The Newcomer of Fiore High
by BasedJuvia
Summary: The time has come for Juvia to move forward in her life despite the harsh cruelty of her secret past. For the first time in her life, she goes to school and there sparks fly when she meets the all-popular man named Gray. Will Gray fall for Juvia despite her being the new girl? Will someone else sweep her off her feet? What will Gray do? Rated M for later chapters. AU. Completed.
1. Chapter 1: The First Day

**This is my very first fanfic! **  
**I'm not much of a writer though so please bear with me. Also, constructive criticism is always welcome and highly appreciated! :D **  
**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN FAIRY TAIL. **  
**Keep in mind that I am too italic happy. **

**Enjoy..~ **  
**Gruvia fic. Rated M just in case for later chapters. c; **

**Summary: The time has come for Juvia to move forward in her life despite the harsh cruelty of her secret past. For the first time in her life, she goes to school and there sparks fly when she meets the all-popular man named Gray. Will Gray fall for Juvia despite her being the new/shy girl? Will someone else sweep her off her feet? *Hint Hint* What will Gray do? Rated M for later chapters. AU. Gruvia, Lyvia, Gruvion.**

* * *

The rain on this particular Sunday night would not cease, for the next day would be an _excruciatingly_ nerve wracking day for a certain blunette and the weather always seemed to ironically mirror her emotions.

This seventeen year-old had been through enough and has definitely surpassed the average trauma level of someone her age, but none of that mattered as she pushed it back and worked to pursue a normal life.

Whatever _normal_ is.

* * *

A few neighborhoods away, a tall, and _built_ man with a stripping habit was dreading the outcome of the next day as well, but for different reasons.

Gray Fullbuster absolutely _hated_ school and tomorrow is the first fucking day of it. I mean, it wasn't _that_ bad, but.. Okay, it was pretty bad.

For eight consecutive hours, he was forced to _not_ get into fights and _not_ take off his clothes. Honestly, it could not get any worse. Especially with the horde of teen girls, who seemed to be in heat, drooling over his every move.

_What was so great about him anyway_?

* * *

'_Beep. Beep. Beep. BEE-'_

"I don't want to. I _really_ don't want to." The blue-haired woman moaned, slowly opening her large, navy blue eyes, and cringing at the the sun who creepily peeked through her translucent curtains.

Juvia quickly got out of bed, trying to fill herself with the necessary energy she needed to survive the rest of the day.

And boy was it going to be a long one.

* * *

After taking a quick shower and trying to make herself look presentable to her standards she went downstairs to the kitchen, wearing a comfortable black uniform skirt that barely covered her knees with her uniform vest.

The young woman opened the pantry to reveal the amount of _no-food_ that there was. Frowning, she rapidly shut the door and decided to herself to skip lunch for today.

She was nervous. So, eating wouldn't be a good idea anyway...

* * *

Back at the Fullbuster estate, said man was already on his roaring motorcycle, ready to make his way to that _hellhole_ of a place they call school.

Once he arrived in the parking lot he parked his _Black Beauty_ and dragged himself through the doors of _Fiore High,_ his school for the past three years.

Gray walked up to the table reading _'Senior Schedule Pick-up'_ to claim the piece of paper that would foretell where he would sulk for the rest of the year.

School really wasn't his thing.

* * *

'_Room 420 - Mr. Dreyer's Class'_

'_Oh, boy. Not that old geezer again,"_ Gray thought, '_I've had him for the past three years and he creeps me the hell out. Especially since that one field trip when I saw him wearing only a spee-_' Gray shut his eyes tight, begging for mercy that the horrid memory would be erased from his mind.

Trying to distract himself, Gray took in the classroom's atmosphere.

The room was fairly large, it could fit about 30 students. The seats were in rows of two, meaning he would have an elbow partner.

Gray sighed externally. Last year he sat next to _Natsu,_ one of his "friends."

The man had the maturity of a..

...

Gray couldn't think of anything that was more immature than the pink-haired fairy.

As if on cue, that very man barges through the doors, alarming every other student in the room except for Gray who had sadly gotten used to his antics.

"Don't tell me you're in this class with me, _droopy-eyes_!" Natsu screamed, propping his leg up onto Gray's desk while leaning forward in front of Gray's face.

"Oi, you got a problem with that, _slanty-eyes_?" Gray remarked, grabbing a fistful of Natsu's uniform shirt in his fairly large hands.

"_NATSU. GRAY."_ Both of their stomachs dropped.

The voice who confidentially called their names was no one other than Erza.

Erza was "friends" with both of them. Though she wasn't like a friend, more like a.. Dictator? Yeah, _definitely_ that.

Her long, red hair reached her hips and she stood at the front of the class with her arms crossed above her chest.

No one fucks with Erza.

As much as Gray didn't want to admit it, he wouldn't dare mess with the woman.

Gray sat down quietly, glaring in the opposite direction of Natsu, who sat directly in front of him while pursuing the same action. Beside Natsu was Lucy Heartafilia, a busty blonde who was also one of Gray's friends. She intertwined her fingers with the pinkette and smiled as they waited in their seats for class to begin.

* * *

Meanwhile, Juvia was shyly walking to school amongst the crowd of students who also walked to school. The blunette made sure to take several different paths so that no one would know which neighborhood she came from.

Boy, if they knew, she was sure that no one would accept her. But she didn't know how things worked. Juvia had never been to an actual school before, let alone be a student at one.

For as long as she could remember, she was "homeschooled", meaning: going to the library by herself and learning alone amongst the books. Being the most fascinated by literature regarding water.

She never had anyone to take care of her. _She never had anyone._

When she was born, Juvia's mother had died giving birth. And her father was the man who gave her up before she could even remember.

Juvia sniffled as she tried to forget those "memories" from her past, feeling a single drop of rain fall against the bridge of her nose. Little did she know, but Juvia had stopped walking a long time ago and all of the other students who she had been walking in a group with had disappeared.

'_Oh no_.' She thought, checking her watch. It read 8:40 am. School starts at 8:45 and she was a half a mile away from the building.

* * *

'_Riiiiiiiiiiiing_.' The final bell of the school rang and Mr. Dreyer closed the door to his classroom and proceeded to call roll.

"Erza Scarlet,"

"HERE."

"Levy McGarden,"

"Here."

"Lucy Heartifilia,"

"Here..~"

"Natsu Dragneel,"

"HEY OLD MAN!"

Cringe. "Gajeel Redfox,"

"Yo."

"Mirajane Strauss,"

"Here!"

"Lisanna Strauss,"

"Here."

"Elfman Strauss,"

"THIS MAN IS HERE."

"Juvia Lockser,"

"..."

"Juvia? Miss Lockser?"

'_Knock. Knock. Knock_.' Three quiet thuds could be heard on the door.

All eyes turned towards it.

The handle slowly opened and there appeared a girl with cerulean blue hair like the sea, which was drenched in water... Also, like the sea.

"Oh my, what have we have here," Mr. Dreyar said, moving his extremely short figure towards the girl.

"Could you perhaps be Juvia Lockser?"

'_What do I say.. Juvia is scared- no, frightened- no, mortified- no-'_ Juvia thought.

"Ahem." The old teacher coughed, bringing her back to reality.

"Yes, sorry, Juvia Lockser is my name. You are correct..." She quietly stated, making her way to the front of the class near Mr. Dreyar. She was sure that the entire class could hear her heart beating as fast as a hummingbird's wings. There were so many people and they were all staring at her.

"Well, you're just in time," Mr. Dreyar smiled. "Since you are new here, why don't you give a brief introduction of yourself?"

Speechless. Juvia could not do this, but somehow she managed to get a few words out.

"Um.. Well, Juvia is new here; new to this town and this school.. Juvia-" She was running out of courage, she had used most of it up asking the lady at the front office for help and directions, but this was too much.

"Juvia... wants... to make good friends with all of you..." she repeated, visibly shaking while looking like a lost puppy in the middle of traffic.

Mr. Dreyar noticed her nervousness and asked her to take a seat.

'_Oh kami, now Juvia has to make a choice for her seat?_' She sighed.

Walking between the aisles, Juvia noticed the only seat available was the one next to a raven haired man who looked like a punk. Placing her small sack down on the floor, Juvia wordlessly took her seat next to the stoic man.

* * *

'_Who the fuck does she think she is sitting next to me? I don't care if there aren't any seats left! She better not be another fangirl. God if she is she better watch ou-_'

**Fuck**. **She's cute.**

The girl next to him looked at him shyly, her navy blue eyes peered into his and he swore he felt something move in his chest.

_'What the hell?! Why did I stop like that?!'_

He stared.

Juvia leaned away from Gray, trying not to make eye contact or try not to notice the way he was staring at her.

'_Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god. Juvia thinks he's a killer. He keeps looking at Juvia and Juvia.. Juvia can't!'_ Juvia begins to shake even harder than before, but as a result of being cold on top of mortified.

Gray noticed this.

Why he realized she was cold he didn't know how, but subconsciously he removed his black leather jacket and handed it to her. Juvia definitely did not know how to react to this, but she somehow managed to smile in thanks and accepted his offering.

Gray watched as she carefully wrapped his jacket around her shoulders.

His jacket. Around her body.

Something inside of him liked seeing that and Gray smirked, resuming his focus on his teacher.

Juvia stared down at her desk where the droplets of water from her hair fell, and she smiled.

Strangely enough, this was the first act of genuine kindness she has ever been treated to. Ever.

* * *

"Oh, I almost forgot. Last on roll: Gray Fullbuster?" Mr. Dreyer asked.

"Oi." The man called out, peering at Juvia from the corner of his eye. She was staring at him like she had never seen a person before and it made him want to show her all of the things in this world.

* * *

_'So that's his name_,'

"Gray-sama..." Juvia accidentally whispered aloud, causing a wild blush to spread across her entire face.

Said man's cheeks slightly buzzed with a tingling feeling when he heard his name with such an honorific. He turned his head towards her while slightly covering his face.

"Yeah?"

...

"T-Thank you..."

* * *

**I hope you liked it. c: Next chapter will come _soon._**


	2. Chapter 2: The Newfound Sun

**Sorry for not updating earlier, school is robbing me of my time. **  
**Anyway, here's chapter two. I'd like to mention that this chapter _does_ have mature themes towards the end regarding acts of rape and abuse towards underage girls. **  
**I am definitely _not_ okay with these things, but rape is something that does happen in real life so, I thought it would be okay to have some realistic ideas. **  
**Hopefully I won't offend anyone. **  
**Other than that, happy reading! c:**

* * *

_So that's his name,' _

_"Gray-sama..." Juvia accidentally whispered aloud, causing a wild blush to spread across her entire face. _

_Said man's cheeks slightly buzzed with a tingling feeling when he heard his name with such an honorific. He turned his head towards her while slightly covering his face. _

_"Yeah?" _

_..._

_"T-Thank you..." _

* * *

An entire fourty-five minutes passed by in Mr. Dreyar's class.

During this time, Juvia was doing her very best to ignore the man sitting next to her. She tried her hardest to pretend that he _wasn't_ there, and that he _wasn't_ stealing glances at her every few minutes.

She was honestly scared shitless because she had never had so much "positive" human interaction before.

'_What should Juvia do? Why is... Gray-sama staring at Juvia? Oh! That's it, he must want his jacket back.'_ Juvia thought, composing herself to hand the jacket back to it's owner.

* * *

"Natsu.. Natsu, wake up! Hurry and wake up before Erz-" It was already too late, the redhead's fist abruptly met the surface of Natsu's desk causing the man to scream "Igneeeeeeel!" in utter fear.

Juvia didn't know why the pinkette screamed this peculiar word, but the entire situation erected a quiet giggle from her, along with a timid smile.

Gray watched her discover joy in the simple, everyday routines that he shrugged off as nothing, realizing her pure innocence of life.

'_Maybe I should give her a tour of the town sometime. _

_She's new here, right? She might like it.'_

* * *

Closing the very large, procedural text book with a loud thud, Mr. Dreyar dismissed his class to go to second period.

Gray gathered his books and began to turn away when he felt a pair of small hands softly tug on his sleeve.

'_Oh god no..._' Gray thought, directing his attention towards the blunette.

"Um.." Juvia averted her eyes from the towering man,

"Here you go, thank you very much.." She looked down at the ground while holding Gray's jacket in front of her chest.

He stared down at the short girl then proceeded to walk away after saying, "No thanks."

'_Eh..?! Juvia doesn't understand! Juvia is sure that this is Gray-sama's! Why is he-'_ Interrupting her train of thought, Gray remarked,

"You're still cold and... _wet.._ So, give it to me after school."

"W-what? Gray-sama where do I give it to you?" Juvia scrambled, her voice louder less shy than before.

**_Cute. _**

Gray fought back the same tingling feeling on his cheeks that he resented so much and mumbled the words, "Parking lot" before speeding out of the room.

Sigh. '_Gray-sama.._'

* * *

It was approaching noon, meaning Mr. Dreyar's homeroom class would be going to lunch.

"Erza! Gray! Lucy and I are eating outside by the benches! Wanna join?!" Natsu screeched, pulling his blonde companion out through the cafeteria doors to the vast outdoors area.

Erza nodded and followed the couple with a strawberry shortcake flavored smoothie.

Gray trailed after, groaning at the immense heat while subconsciously taking his shirt off soon after, his pants.

**[NOSEBLEED]**

* * *

Across the field, the blue-haired woman sat under an aging oak tree, sheltered by the shade which allowed her to cool off.

Small, yellow flowers grew all over the ground, which _of course_ she admired.

Juvia sighed, closing her eyes and tried to diminish the massive pang of hunger that radiated through her system.

_'Juvia wishes she had some food.._'

* * *

Natsu's group sat on their own picnic table and began to eat, including Gray who ate an extravagant meal prepared by his very own butler.

In the midst of eating, his eyes began to wander. Looking for the shy girl who sits next to him in homeroom.

'_I wonder if she's okay, she seemed really shy and the people here can be the biggest dicks ever, I know that because I- WAIT, why the fuck do I even care?_' Gray thought, sparking up an internal war.

'_I, Gray Fullbuster, do_ not_ care_.'

...

Maybe.

* * *

Moments later, the dark-haired man found himself _aimlessly_ wandering when he _coincidentally_ spotted Juvia.

A debate took place inside his mind, as he made his way towards the young girl on whether or not he should do this or not.

Juvia, being an observant person, quickly realized the man was walking in her direction.

Her heart sped up.

'_Juvia doesn't like this feeling.. No, no! This doesn't mean anything, Gray-sama probably just wants his jacket back now instead of later._' Juvia decided.

When Gray was in arms reach of her, he sat down on the flower occupied ground.

Both stared at each other in absolute silence.

'_Why the fuck isn't she saying anything?' _

_'WHAT DOES JUVIA SAY? JUVIA DOESN'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY!' _

_'This was a horrible idea.' _

_'Juvia is going to die! And why isn't Gray-sama wearing any clothes?!' _

_'Fuck, I'm not wearing any clothes...' _

They both realized his lack of... Decency, and instantly avoided each other's eyes.

As the tension grew between them, Laxus and Elfman were playing football nearby when the gigantic, non-elf-like, man lost his balance and bumped into Gray, creating a large ruckus and knocking him over.

* * *

Gray was about to curse at Elfman when he realized the position they were in.

His large, and _almost naked body_ was hovering over Juvia's small and fragile one.

His arms beside her head and legs on either side of her petite waist while she laid on her back with the most petrified look plastered upon her face.

'_SHIT_.' Gray thought, but he couldn't help but admire how small and _deliciously_ innocent she looked sprawled out beneath him.

Gray licked his lips, holding on to every last bit of self-control that he had, knowing that his eyes were partially clouded.

But something was wrong, she almost seemed _too_ scared.

'_Wait.. Is she crying?! Fuck! Gray Fullbuster you have _fucked _up.'_ He scolded himself for thinking of such impure things and quickly got off of Juvia.

"Sorry about that.." He apologized, reaching a hand towards her to assist her in sitting up, but Juvia stared at his hand in fear and..

Did she flinch? Why would she even-

"Juvia is sorry Gray-sama.. She really must go now." Juvia quickly stated, gathering her few belongings and running away.

'_What was that all about?_'

* * *

Juvia fled from the scene that just occurred.

It was too much like the past.

She had never wanted to be in that same position again. It brought back too many horrible memories...

* * *

**[FLASHBACK]**

Thirteen year-old, Juvia Lockser, was laying on a small, filthy pile of fabric that clearly did not pass for a bed.

Her hair was matted with knots throughout and there were visible bruises on her pale skin.

She sobbed. Every single night, but she fought too and she was tired of it.

...

For the past six months since she turned thirteen, she had been in this room.

Before this room, she was staying at a foster home with many other children since her father had given all hope up on her because of the death of her mother.

* * *

Then one day, a strange man arrived, who she immediately distrusted, and he had legally signed off as her new and official guardian.

Of course Juvia was excited to be wanted for once in her life, but she couldn't shake the bad premonition.

Flash semi-forward and Juvia was now being held captive at a mysterious building. The only thing she knew about it was that this was their headquarters that went by the name of '_Phantom Lord_.'

There, she was beaten daily and verbally abused until the day she turned thirteen, and from that wretched day on, Juvia experienced the worst of things that one could imaginable.

* * *

The way they touched her, roughly handled her, chained her, beat her, raped her, starved her..

She remembers every last detail from her days at Phantom Lord.

And no amount of soap could wash away the dirt that was branded onto her soul.

**[END OF FLASHBACK]**

* * *

'_It has been over a year since Juvia has escaped.. Why aren't things getting better for Juvia?' _

The blunette repeated through her mind while running from her new school's campus and onto the sidewalk leading to her "home."

The hot tears bore into her sensitive skin as she ran.

"Juvia is sorry.. So, _so_ sorry for whatever she did. Please," she begged to the sky, as she stopped running and fell to her knees.

She didn't care how hot the pavement was, she had been through worse times, but now she had to plead. It was the only thing she could do.

"Someone help Juvia.. Please." She coughed through her tears, realizing how alone and scared she truly was.

* * *

"Oi! Juvia!"The voice called out from behind her and as soon as she heard it, Juvia instantly recognized it.

It was the voice of the man who showed her what kindness is.

The man who pushed away the clouds and gave her a glimpse of the sun for the first time, _Gray Fullbuster_.

* * *

**YAAAAAAS. Chapter 3 will be released tomorrow. c:**


	3. Chapter 3: Many New Feelings

_"Oi! Juvia!" The voice called out from behind her and as soon as she heard it, Juvia instantly recognized it._

_It was the voice of the man who showed her what kindness is._

_The man who pushed away the clouds and gave her a glimpse of the sun for the first time, Gray Fullbuster._

* * *

Although Juvia felt miserable, she felt the corners of her mouth slightly turn upwards at the sound of his voice.

His deep, confident, and comforting voice.

'_Juvia should thank him.._' She thought, but before she could apply her thoughts, the man was crouched similarly in front of her. Gray used his thumb and forefinger to gently lift her head up to face him. He had never seen someone look so.. Dead, but alive as well.

'_What the hell is going on?'_ He pondered as he noticed her pale, tear-stained cheeks that were already blushing from their contact.

"So," Gray stated, while lifting her up to her feet,"Are we gonna talk about this or no?"

Juvia shrugged and nodded her head in in a silent "no," while wiping her face.

"Fine, easier for me," he chuckled, "..But at least let me take you home."

Juvia's eyes widened, '_Gray-sama definitely can't see my home! If he does-'_ Before inner Juvia could finish her protest, Gray had his hand clasped around her tiny wrist and was leading them towards his motorcycle that he clumsily parked, as he was in a rush to find Juvia.

Juvia was in shock and she honestly didn't know _what_ to say to stop Gray from taking her home, until she struck an epiphany and devised a plan.

By now Gray had already secured his helmet on the girl and retrieved his jacket from her possessions and wrapped it around Juvia. The blunette was confused by his actions, '_Shouldn't Gray-sama be the one wearing these..?'_

Oh, well. The only thing that mattered now was completing her mission.

* * *

As the two drove away from he curb, Juvia felt somewhat safe. Her arms were softly wrapped around Gray's abdomen, and she leaned her head on his toned back.

'_Fuck, Juvia..'_ Gray thought.

He never felt so... Relaxed before, and now he was getting goosebumps from her minuscule touches.

Trying to clear his mind Gray decided to start a conversation, "Could you tell me where to turn, Juvia? To get to your place?"

The navy eyed girl in the back mustered up all of her newfound strength to follow every step that she laid out to _not_ get to her house. Instead, she was going to ask Gray to take her to Gajeel's house, her pretend house for today.

Hopefully Gray didn't know where he lived.

* * *

**[FLASHBACK]**

_During the last few days of her imprisonment, Juvia had overheard her captors speaking carefully about federal investigators. _

_A few days passed by without the men ever coning into her cell to do things. She was grateful, but also perplexed at this sudden change. _

_After three whole days of peace, the police force had shown up and began to free all of the girls from their cold shackles. _

_Gajeel was the one who unlocked her enslavement. He was not a part of the police, but his father had been the chief and so he worked by his side every now and then. _

_The first thing she noticed was how young he was, probably her age. Secondly, his hair was extremely long for a male and if she had enough energy, she might have compared the length of their locks. _

_Once all of the girls were saved from Phantom Lord, the questioning began and Gajeel was Juvia's personal interviewer. _

_It happened for a week. _

_He would invite her to the quiet, questioning room, ask questions, then she would be dismissed to go to the temporary housing provided by the city. The Lockser girl was so thankful to be free, but she wanted to go home desperately. Well, not that she still had one, but she would find one and start a new life. _

_Gajeel commented once that she had a fire in her that "would stop burning once hell freezes over."_

* * *

_'Thank you, Gajeel-kun..' Juvia thought. _

_It was her last day of questioning and she was free to leave. _

_Really free, this time. _

_Most of the other girls had decided to stay at the housing for some more time to handle with their trauma, but Juvia could not simply sit and wait. Juvia collected a small amount of money from Gajeel to "survive that fucking mess" as he stated it, and she set off._

* * *

_It wasn't much of a home, but it worked. _

_The newly-freed woman had found an abandoned house behind a thick wall of trees. Surprisingly, the water lines were still turned on, but the reasoning was most likely because a small stream ran right beside the house. _

_The place was more than enough for Juvia, but she vowed to not let anyone know because if they found out, then she would have to explain a lot of more things.. _

_Which meant being reminded of her past._

**[END FLASHBACK]**

* * *

"T-take a left over here, and his- _MY_ house is the third one on the right.." Juvia nervously executed.

Gray pulled his bike over and got off to help Juvia stand.

Navy blue met black and both of their hearts jumped from the eye contact.

"Um.. Juvia will go now.. Thank you very much, Gray-sama." Juvia said as she bowed her head down and ran towards the front door.

The broad-shouldered man watched her wave from the porch and took it as a sign to take his leave.

* * *

Juvia quietly watched as the dark man drove away in the opposite direction of their school, not bothering to return since it was still their lunch break. The raven-haired man sped down the street and proceeded to pull into the driveway of a literal mansion.

Since he wasn't too far off, Juvia was able to see and she stood there in awe with her mouth agape.

'_No way.. That's Gray-sama's house? It's so big.. And.. Big. Gray-sama must be very rich.._' Juvia sighed, feeling relieved that she didn't show him her actual place of residence.

She slowly backed off of Gajeel's porch and made her way to her own home, reminding herself to inform Gajeel of today's events.

* * *

The next day, Juvia left the house twenty minutes earlier than usual so that she could find her first real friend, Gajeel Redfox.

* * *

"Goodmorning, Gajeel-kun!" The petite woman smiled, peeking her head around the corner to see the tall man.

"Che. What?" He snarked, leaning against a wall at the back of the school while chewing on a toothpick.

"Juvia just wanted to tell Gajeel-kun about what happened yesterday.." She said, stepping closer to the man.

"Yeah?" He asked.

"Well.. Gray-sama saw Juvia on the side of the road and offered to take her home and because Juvia does not want anyone else knowing about where she lives, she pretended that Gajeel-kun's house was hers." Juvia quickly spoke, shyly turning her body side-to-side while staring at the man.

"You did _what?_ Do you know how reckless that was, Juvia?" Gajeel, clearly annoyed, spat out.

"Juvia is sorry," she whispered,"Juvia did not know what else to do.. Juvia is so sorry." By now, tears had started to form at the corner of her eyes and Juvia bit her lip to prevent their spill.

Sigh. '_What a drag.._' Gajeel walked forward to Juvia and _awkwardly_ patted her head.

This action was very comforting for the girl and Juvia smiled in return while jumping onto Gajeel and squeezing her arms around his wide shoulders.

* * *

Gray Fullbuster yawned, arching his back to relieve the tired feeling from his body.

'_Tell me again why I even bother coming to school?_' He thought, tossing his bag over his shoulder and walking towards the building.

He decided to enter through the back door of the school to avoid his multitude of fangirls when he heard a familiar voice.

His ears perked up as he walked toward the sound.

"Gajeel-kun, thank you for being so kind! You are the only person here that Juvia _really_ trusts!" Gray stopped in his tracks.

_'Juvia?_

_Why is Juvia with Gajeel?_

_That metal-headed freak who acts like he's too cool to care._

_And why the fuck is she so comfortable around him?_'

Gray hadn't even seen her speak to him at school, let alone show any signs of _trust._

_'Yeah, that's definitely not suspicious.' _He noted.

The fuming man abruptly turned the corner to see the small girl tightly wrapping her arms around the man's body while smiling.

* * *

Gray felt a storm of emotions.

He was confused, kind of pissed, angry and.. Was he jealous?

Before he could think of what he was doing, Gray's hands were on Gajeel's shirt and in a split second the man with an abundance of piercings had his back forcefully pressed onto the wall.

"Gray-sama!" Juvia squealed.

The shirtless Gray glared into Gajeel's cold, steel eyes before releasing his grip and angrily leaving the area.

* * *

'_What the fuck was I thinking? _

_She probably hates me now. _

_Not like I care_.'

* * *

"Gray-sama! Wait!" Juvia called, chasing after his figure.

Once Juvia had caught up with the man, he noticed that she was panting, but continued to speak nevertheless,

"Juvia is so sorry, Gray-sama. She didn't mean to upset you.. Really, Juvia is sorry for causing Gray-sama so much trouble."

'_That is_** it**.' Gray thought.

* * *

'_Gray-sama feels so warm.. WAIT WHAT_.'

"Eh?" Juvia blinked, she couldn't see anything.

The world was black.

'_Is Juvia dead?_'

"Juvia.." She heard Gray whisper.

'_Is Gray-sama.. God?_'

Moments later, she realized that she was being embraced by the man whom she thought was God.

Gray buried his head in her sweet-smelling hair and tightened his wrap around her small frame.

'_What am I doing..?_' He thought, feeling a rush of warmth to spread across his face, causing him to move his head deeper into her soft, curly locks.

* * *

"Juvia, let's go somewhere.."

* * *

**OOOOOOOO. Dun dun dunnnnn!~**

** Sorry about the crappiness of this chapter. **

**I'll try to do better on chapter 4! (Fluff or smut?)**

**Also, thanks for the reviews, follows, and favorites. c: **

**As a novice writer that really makes me feel nice and TINGLY. **


	4. Chapter 4: The First Touch

**This chapter feels so short. :c**

**Hopefully it delivers!**

* * *

_"Juvia, let's go somewhere."_

* * *

The girl stood motionless, with her eyes closed and forehead pressed against Gray's breathing chest. Without a word, Juvia gently squeezed his arm.

Gray accepted her answer and released her from his hold, "Find me afterschool, Juvia."

Juvia stood wide-eyed and nodded, then shyly walked with Gray to their first period class.

* * *

"Hey, ice-brain! Where didja go yesterday at lunch?!" Natsu hollered, allowing the entire classroom to hear his question.

"None of your business, dipshit." Gray replied.

This time, Lucy spoke, "I noticed that Juvia was gone too. Were you two together?"

Erza stopped writing on the board as a small blush reached her cheeks, she had always been vulnerable to intimately romantic ideas.

Gray rolled his eyes at the blonde's question.

_Of course_ they were together, but he couldn't tell _them_ that.

"Ne, Juvia?" Lucy asked.

_'Shit! Wait, Juvia! Don't ans-'_ Gray called out within the safety of this mind. He opened his mouth to speak for the girl, but before he could, Juvia had already begun to reply.

_'What should Juvia say? Gray-sama has a high reputation at this school, and Juvia does not so if they know that Gray-sama took me home, he will get embarrassed.'_ She thought before speaking.

"No, Lucy-san, Juvia just went home because she wasn't feeling very well." Juvia confidently answered.

Wait.. What?

_'What did she just say? Did Juvia just lie?'_ Gray stared at her girl, trying to get her attention and he did. Juvia looked at Gray and sweetly smiled, thinking that she made him happy by saving his reputation. Little did she know that the dark-eyed man felt the complete opposite.

Gray returned his focus back to his work and shut out everyone else.

_'Did she not care?'_

* * *

Hours passed by and the dismissal bell had rang, causing a herd of students to flood into the halls.

Juvia had stayed after class to assist her teacher with things such as collecting all the books and wiping the boards down.

After saying her goodbye's to Mr. Dreyar, Juvia started towards the doors.

_'Gray-sama said to find him afterschool, didn't he? Should Juvia go? Juvia doesn't want Gray-sama to be embarrassed of being seen with her.. But it would be rude to not go.'_ Juvia pondered, soon thinking of _another_ plan.

She would simply pretend she wasn't talking to Gray while talking to him, so nobody would notice her interacting with him.

* * *

The short-statured woman gracefully trotted in the direction of Gray's motorcycle.

_'Juvia hopes she didn't make Gray-sama wait.. Hm, well. Time to activate mission: Don't-Ruin-Gray-sama's-Reputation!'_ She exclaimed to herself, brimming with hope.

"Hey, Juvia," the man stated, looking slightly upset.

_'I need to ask her what she meant when she pretended that nothing happened yesterday.'_ Gray concluded.

Juvia walked closer towards him, but turned to her head to the side when she replied,

"Gray-sama, Juvia really cannot be seen with you."

...

"_WHAT?_" Gray's head snapped up when he heard this.

"Why would you say that, Juvia? Oh, and why would you lie and say that _nothing_ happened between us yesterday? Care to explain what the fuck is going on?!" Gray was screaming, clearly angry that Juvia was almost ignoring him. In return, the blue girl's eyes were wide in fear and shock.

"W-what did Juvia do wrong..?" She asked, her voice shaking.

Gray raked his hand through his black hair and leaned back onto his bike, confused by all of the things going on.

People were already beginning to stare at the two.

_'Juvia said she didn't want others so see me with her, right? No problem.'_ Gray swooped the girl up and sat her on his motorcycle, not giving her time to stop or think about his actions. Soon following, Gray hopped on and drove off with the still confused girl clinging to his back.

* * *

The tension was still thick between the pair and surprisingly enough, Juvia was the one to break the ice.

Was she growing more comfortable with him now?

"G-Gray-sama.. Um, where are you taking me?"

"You said you didn't want to be seen with me, right? Well, we're going to a safe place. Don't worry." He barked out, still flustered.

He just needed to be alone with her.

"It's not that Juvia doesn't want to be seen with Gray-sama, but Gray-sama's reputation might be damaged if he's seen with Juvia.." The woman whispered, with her forehead pressed against his back to avoid stings from the wind.

The driver of the black bike was completely embarrassed.

_'Oh my god.. I can't believe that.. WHAT THE FUCK. This isn't my fault! But I still can't believe it..'_ Gray mentally stabbed himself in the gut repeatedly hoping that the imaginary wounds would actually kill him. He could not take this kind of himiliation. _The_ Gray Fullbuster had gotten so worked up over a girl.

And said girl was Juvia.

Sigh. '_I guess it's not that bad.'_ He thought.

"Gray-sama?" Juvia asked, waiting for him to reply to her statement.

"Uh, yeah. Nevermind." He awkwardly said while driving his bike into a very large driveway. Juvia's eyes were wider than the usual wide of them.

The man rose up from the seat of his motorcycle and offered his hand to Juvia, she nervously took it and stood in awe while ogling at the estate. Their hands stayed connected as he led her towards the grand, front door which was solid iron. The house had to be at least _half_ the size of their school. It was honestly the largest and most-expensive-looking house Juvia has laid her eyes on.

When she came back to reality, Gray released her hand to grab his house key. As soon as the massive doors open, a butler had appeared to greet Gray and a very mesmerized Juvia.

"Welcome back, Master." The tall and slender butler spoke. His hair was longer than Gray's, but black as well.

"Sebastian, how many times do I have to tell you.. _Please_ don't call me that." Gray whined, kicking his shoes off in a lazy manor. Juvia wanted to smile at his childish antics.

"My apologies, sir. And who may this be?" Sebastian asked while looking at the amused Juvia.

Gray began to speak, "Oh, she's my-"

"Juvia!" The woman cut him off. "Juvia is friends with Gray-sama from school!" She politely responded to the tall man.

"It's a pleasure meeting you.. _Gray's_ Juvia." The butler winked.

The two immediately blushed and looked away to the floor.

"I will be in the kitchen preparing dinner, sir." Sebastian left the pair alone.

* * *

"Gray-sama you have a very nice house! It's so.. amazing! And big! And so pretty!" Juvia cheered while taking a few steps in to view the entry way. Gray walked to the staircase and started to go up, Juvia followed.

"Thanks, I guess, but I can't take any credit for it. I inherited it from my parents. They had a lot of money because of some ice-making business or whatever." He informed her.

Juvia paid close attention to every single word he said and he found it cute.

"Wait, Gray-sama, did you say you inherited this house?"

"Yeah," Gray opened a door that revealed a very large room. It had a bed in it and wasn't very... Organized, so Juvia assumed it to be his.

"My old man and lady passed away a long time ago, I don't even remember what their faces looked like." He chuckled, but she could hear the hurt in his voice.

"Juvia is sorry to hear, Gray-sama.."

"It's no big deal, plus I have my aunt, Ur. She's taken care of me forever and is basically a mother to me," the dark-haired man said, while collapsing onto his comfy bed covered with black sheets.

Juvia didn't know where else to sit so she sat on the edge of Gray's bed, as far away from him as she could be without being on the floor. After a small conversation about Ur and his house Gray asked her about her own parents. Juvia smiled sadly as she closed her eyes to contemplate.

_'It wouldn't hurt to tell one person, right? Especially Gray-sama.'_

* * *

The blunette mustered up her strength and began to tell her tale, of how her mother had died while giving birth to her and how her father had put her in foster care.

That was all she could tell him.

For now.

* * *

"I guess we're pretty similar then," Gray smiled. Juvia returned the smile and nodded her head in assurance.

"Dammit, Juvia, stop being so fucking cute." Gray thought **aloud.**

_Fuck._

Did he really just say that?

Juvia's cheeks reddened and she shook her head in confusion while holding her face, "Juvia is sorry! Juvia is sorry, Gray-sama!" She squealed.

Although Gray himself was blushing in shame, he couldn't help but laugh at how adorable she was. The smiling man reached over across his bed and pulled Juvia close to his side into a tight embrace. He found himself shaking in nervousness when holding her in his arms, Gray had never been the kind to do this kind of thing, but it's not like he had a choice.

His body moved on it's own.

...

"Juvia is confused.. Gray-sama was just angry with her and now he's hugging Juvia," she said, looking up at him while softly wrapping her arms around his body.

Gray laughed, _'How much more innocent does she get?'_

"Juvia, I wasn't mad at you. You're just.. Cute." He stated, hearing his voice slightly crack. This time, Juvia was the one to giggle, and in that moment they both felt a growing warmth in their chests.

Just then Gray closed his eyes and pressed his forehead onto hers, feeling her soft curls touch his face.

Juvia enjoyed his touch and closed her eyes, but she knew that Gray-sama wanted more.

And she would do anything for her Gray-sama.

So, she leaned closer against his muscular chest and brushed her delicate lips against the spot where his lips and cheek met and whispered something he could not discern.

Gray opened his eyes to see hers still closed and she looked so beautiful. The towering man then gently pressed his lips to hers, and they stayed like that for a short moment, even though it felt like eternity.

Gray's heart was jumping out of his chest as Juvia melted against his body and he squeezed her frame tighter.

* * *

Their lips parted for a short second and they were both craving for more and were just about to when a sudden knock was heard from Gray's door.

Said man, frustrated, called out to the person who disturbed their intimate moment as Juvia and Gray released their grips on each other.

There was no reply, instead the door swung open and the figure stood there staring, then proceeded to speak in a deep and mysterious voice, "Who's this beautiful creature you've been hiding from me, Gray?"

* * *

**BLACK BUTLER REFERENCE, ANYBODY? **

**I tried to fluff this up a bit. Hopefully this is good enough for you guys. c: **

**Also, sorry for the shortness!**


	5. Chapter 5: Fast Discoveries

**Hey, guys! **

**First I wanna apologize for not updating yesterday, I was somewhat busy and just couldn't get around to it.**

**To make up for yesterday, I made this chapter SUUUUPER long. [ 4k words+ (´ε｀ ) ]**

**So yeah, enjoy chapter five!**

**Also, content wise, I understand the story is developing pretty fast and I honestly don't like it that much, but w/e by the time I realized it**

**I was like half way done writing this massive chapter.**

**If you have ideas of how I could fix this, let me know peas. c:**

**Gomen. o(╥﹏╥)o**

* * *

Their lips parted for a short second and they were both craving for more and were just about to when a sudden knock was heard from Gray's door.

Said man, frustrated, called out to the person who disturbed their intimate moment as Juvia and Gray released their grips on each other.

There was no reply, instead the door swung open and the figure stood there staring, then proceeded to speak in a deep and mysterious voice, "Who's this beautiful creature you've been hiding from me, Gray?"

* * *

"Lyon, what are you doing here?" Gray stood, appearing to look threatened.

The white-haired man replied to Gray's question, "Ultear and I decided to check into town and see how baby Gray was doing, is that so wrong?" He walked towards Gray, then switched his focus to the girl sitting on the bed.

"Well, I'm fucking great, thanks for asking. Now leave, asshole." Gray spat out.

"Gray! How dare you speak such profanities in the presence of such a _beautiful_ woman.." Lyon winked at Juvia, earning a low grow from Gray.

"Juvia thinks she should leave now.." The shy girl stated, standing up and starting towards the door.

"Juvia wait-"

"What a beautiful name that is. Juvia.." Lyon said, "But it's raining very hard currently, so unless you have a car, leaving will be a problem."

"Lyon, what the hell are you trying to do?" Gray yelled.

"Oh, I have an idea," the bubbly man stated, "since Gray doesn't drive cars, I could take you home!"

"Um.. Juvia doesn't know if that's such a good idea. Juvia just met you."

"Oh, come on! I'm practically Gray's older brother."

'_Older brother?_' The blunette reviewed.

After a few more minutes of Lyon trying to persuade the girl, she was about to say something. But before she could respond to his request, the new man held onto both of her wrists and moved them closer to his chiseled chest.

Juvia was completely overwhelmed, five minutes ago she had her _real_ first kiss and now she was practically holding hands with a stranger.

"If you think I'll let you take her anywhere, you're wrong." Gray snapped. Lyon _always_ interfered with everything he did. It was true that he was like a brother, but that's exactly what made him so annoying.

Gray was about to offer another plan, but Juvia was already speaking, "Juvia.. Juvia guesses it's okay for Lyon-san to take her home." Thinking that there would be no way way to weasel her way out.

'_This is a bad idea.._' The girl thought. The cheerful man flashed a smile and Juvia couldn't help but smile back.

He was pretty cute.

Gray stood motionless, without words. He believed that Juvia would be too scared to go with the man, especially since he was such a creep, but now she agreed to go?

"Great! Let's go, Juvia!" Lyon purred, taking a quick look at Gray and smirking at his success.

* * *

The raven-haired man angrily watched Lyon escort Juvia to his car in the rain. That should be him taking her home.

_No_.

Juvia should still be here.

* * *

As Lyon turned his expensive car's engine on, he began to question the girl next to him.

"So, Juvia, are you new here? I haven't seen your face around, and I'm _sure_ that I would remember it." Juvia blushed, not knowing how to respond, and only nodded her head.

The man laughed and smiled.

'_Adorable. Simply adorable.'_ Lyon thought.

"Which direction shall I be heading to?" He asked.

'_Not again! Juvia forgot again! Well.. Juvia can't continue bothering Gajeel-kun's house, so.. Maybe since Lyon is only visiting town, she can tell him to take her home?_'

"Um.. Can you promise not to tell Gray-sama about this?" Lyon grinned, "_Of course_, Juvia-chan. Anything for you."

'_Eh.. Why is this guy so creepy?'_ She cringed.

"Okay, turn right after this next street and keep driving until you see nothing but trees." He was slightly confused by the meaning of her words, but followed her instructions anyway. The car soon approached the forest-like area that Juvia mentioned.

"Juvia is home. Thank you, Lyon-san." She nervously smiled. This was the first time anyone other than Gajeel had seen her true home.

"Juvia, what kind of a man would I be if I didn't walk you to your door in this weather?" He joked, leaving the car and running to opposite side of the car to open her door. He wrapped his jacket around her shoulders and extended its reach to her head to shield her from the storm.

The two walked through the dense shrubbery and came into the vicinity of her run-down, abandoned house.

"Is this where you live, Juvia?" Lyon asked, eyes wide, guiding her underneath the shelter of a makeshift porch.

"Y-Yes.." The girl was blushing in pure humiliation. Lyon was a rich and successful man, and he was now escorting her to her shack of a home.

"Oh, Juvia-chan." He voiced, caressing her soft, pale cheeks.

* * *

Meanwhile at the Fullbuster residence, said man was gearing up and starting his motorcycle.

'_I can't fucking believe I let him take her away from me like that_!' Gray scolded himself while driving to Gajeel's house, wanting to assure Juvia's safety.

Not too long after, Gray reached Gajeel's house and hurried to it's front porch and knocked. The door opened and Gray was taken aback by what he saw.

There in the doorway stood a half-naked and _very_ sweaty Gajeel. He looked as though he was working out, but.. This was Juvia's house.

Gray felt a surge of anger course through his veins and he viciously asked, "What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Me? What are _you_ doing here?" The metalhead replied, annoyed by the amount of sass Gray had been giving him lately. He wasn't just going to sit around and let the punk do away with him, but before he could act he remembered that Juvia had told Gray that this was _her_ house.

_'Fuuuuuuuuu-'_

"Listen, Gajeel, I don't wanna pick a fight with you, but if I have to you know I will. So, just tell me where Juvia is. Even better, let me in to see her myself." Gray said while trying to slide past Gajeel.

"Yeah, no. I'm afraid I can't let that happen." Gajeel stumbled, trying to cook up an excuse.

"**Let. Me. In.**" Gray hissed, his eyes full of anger. The two men glared at each other before Gray began to speak again, "Gajeel. This is Juvia we're talking about, please dont make me say it. I _need_ to see her. I'm worried. Do you understand?" Gray pleaded.

Gajeel had to give him some props. He surely wouldn't have this much self-restraint if he had found another man answering the door at Levy's place. He caved.

"Fine," the long-haired man choked out, "This is my house. Not Juvia's."

"So you two live together!?"

"No, dipshit. She just doesn't live here. She lied to you."

"Why the fuck would she lie?"

"You'll understand once we get there."

"Huh? Whe-" Gajeel pushed the man out of the house while opening up an umbrella for him and another for the confused raven.

"Hey! Don't touch me, pervert!" Gray yelled.

Gajeel pouted and punched the guy in the shoulder, "Just follow me, assbutt."

Assbutt?

* * *

No longer than ten minutes passed and the two men were standing in front of the trees that hid Juvia's house. Gajeel motioned Gray to take the lead and the puzzled man slowly walked through the thick branches.

What he saw was something he couldn't believe.

Juvia's _real_ house was a very old, battered up, and abandoned cabin made of wood. Most of it was rotting away. It was pretty much the type of house they used when filming horror movies. But other than that Gray felt sadness, at the fact that Juvia felt the need to hide this from him. He would never judge her for something like this. All Gray wanted to do was protect Juvia, but he needed to be telling her this, not just thinking it.

The man slowly began to approach the house when he noticed an unusual figure. Gray dropped his umbrella and felt every drop of blood in his body boil to unnatural temperatures.

There stood Juvia, forcibly pressed against a wall while Lyon whispered into her ear.

Juvia looked petrified and small, and Gray would not allow another second of that to continue as he ran through the pouring rain, wanting to tear the man's throat out.

_"Lyon!_ Get your fucking hands off of her!" Gray grabbed Lyon by the shirt and harshly threw him to the ground.

"Gray-sama!" Juvia cried, with tears brimming her eyes in shock. Gajeel who was standing outside of the area heard the commotion and ran to the house to find out what was going on. When he entered the small building he found a furious Gray punching Lyon who was sprawled out on the floor.

He had never seen Gray so angry before, of course he has seen him in frights, but never did he put so much effort and... Emotion into his every punch.

Realizing that Gray needed to stop before things got out of hand, Gajeel grabbed the man by his shoulders and pulled him back.

"What the hell?! Stop it, Gajeel! This bastard needs to learn! What if we weren't here to stop him?!" Gray screamed, struggling to get out of Gajeel's hold.

Juvia ran to Lyon's side and checked to see if he was alright. Well, he wasn't, but at least he's conscious.

"Lyon-san, can you sit up?" The girl quietly asked, supporting the man's back to allow him to sit and Lyon did as he was told.

Gray was surprised that she could still care for the man's well-being. She practically met him twenty minutes ago and between then and now, he had invaded her privacy and made a move on her.

Juvia was truly one of a kind.

* * *

The room went quiet for a minute with the exception of Gray and Lyon's deep breathing.

"Juvia is sorry for causing all of this.." She apologized, bowing her head down, feeling her tears drop like the raindrops outside.

'_Why do bad things happen wherever Juvia goes?_' She thought, squeezing her eyes tightly.

"It's not your fault, Juvia." Gray calmly stated, released from Gajeel's restraint. He bent down and tucked her blue hair behind her ear and forced a smile onto his face. Juvia giggled at the awkwardness of his facial expression and smiled back.

The long-haired man in the back watching felt slightly awkward watching this intimate scene and decided to leave, "I'll take Lyon to Wendy's house, so her and her mom can check his wounds." Gajeel threw the man over his shoulder and made his way out through the door.

It was just the two of them alone, again.

"Gray-sama, Juvia knows you said it's not her fault, but it really seems like it. So, Juvia is very sorry." She repeated, staring at the floor.

"Nevermind that, Juvia," Gray smiled, "I want a deluxe house tour!" Juvia was confused by his sudden change of emotions, but then embarrassed when she realized that Gray had found her real home.

Her cheeks went red, "Gray-sama, Juvia is sorry for lying to you.."

"Why?"

"Well.."

"Why did you not tell me the truth, Juvia?"

Juvia stopped for a moment. She couldn't tell him because.. How could she? This was an abandoned home and if she told anyone then a multitude of other questions that she did not want to answer would pop up.

"Juvia couldn't. Juvia is trying hard to move forward with her life, and this is the best she could manage."

"Move on from-" Gray asked, but cut himself short as he noticed the pained look in her eyes.

They stared at each other for moments, _seeing_ their unspoken words in dark blue and dark gray orbs.

Once Juvia snapped back into reality she realized that Gray had a few wounds himself, and left to go grab supplies.. If she had any. The girl grabbed a small washcloth and wet it with running water from the faucet, then turned around to go back to Gray, but found him standing directly behind her.

"Gray-sama, you scared me.." She blushed at their close proximity.

"You don't need to take care of my wounds, Juvia." Gray spoke, moving his right hand to cup her cheek.

'_I'll take care of you._'

"W-well.. It's the least Juvia c-can do for Gray-sama.." She stuttered, causing Gray to blush as well. The girl noticed his blush and began to dab his chin with the towel. They stood for a few minutes enjoying each other's company as Juvia tended to his injury.

Her eyes began to wander over his tense, muscular chest and then met with his eyes and that was what sparked it.

Gray quickly dove in and fiercely kissed the girl, not giving her time to breathe. Juvia returned the kiss with just as much passion as he did. Both of Gray's hands were now on her face, trying to pull her closer to him. Juvia dropped the wet cloth long ago and rested her hands against his chest.

As they continued, Gray's large hands moved down to her waist. Feeling her body through her thin sweater.

He wanted more of Juvia.

He slowly slid one hand under her shirt to feel her stomach when Juvia flinched and pushed him away.

"D-Did I do something wrong?" He asked, feeling slightly rejected.

"No, Gray-sama. Juvia was just.. Reminded of something unpleasant, that's all." She smiled, trying to reassure the worried Gray.

The man studied her face, "Okay.."

Juvia checked the time, it was already nine o'clock at night, "It's getting late, Gray-sama.. Juvia needs to sleep, and so do you."

Gray figured she might say something like that and he wanted to stay a little longer, so he came up with an excuse, "You didn't show me around though." He winked.

Juvia sighed and smiled, nodding her head and leading the tricky man around her house.

* * *

There truly wasn't too much to show, but Gray enjoyed his personal tour nevertheless.

"That was Juvia's bathroom, and this is Juvia's room," she stated, opening the creaky wooden door. What she saw was a different sight than what she usually came home to. Her room had been flooded with rain water that poured in from a large hole in the ceiling.

"Eh?!" She exclaimed, eyes wide in shock to see her already worn out room completely destroyed.

"Wow," Gray stated, "You take water beds to a whole new level."

Juvia, who was visibly stressed out, jokingly punched Gray in the arm, "Gray-sama! Now is not the time to make a joke!"

"You're right, _what was I thinking_. Nine o'clock is a _horrible_ hour to joke around at." He mewled, nodding his head in self-disappointment.

Juvia couldn't help but laugh at his ridiculousness, "Gray-sama!" She grinned, feeling better about the situation.

Said man returned the smile, "Since you can't sleep here, do you want to.. Um, stay in one of the guest rooms at my place?" ️

Juvia turned several shades of red and replied, "Are you sure, Gray-sama?"

"Y-yeah.."

She smiled.

'_Gray-sama is so kind._'

* * *

Around nine-thirty the pair arrived at the Fullbuster estate, Sebastian greeted them and escorted Juvia to her room.

"Miss Lockser, dinner will be ready in ten minutes, please join us in the dining room then." He said, bowing then leaving the girl.

Juvia looked around the grand room, for a guest suite it looked more like.. A five-star hotel room. The walls were painted a lovely shade of orange and the bed was enormous.

Remembering that dinner would be soon, Juvia decided to slip into something more elegant.

That is what rich people did for dinner, right?

The blue-haired girl put on a white, spaghetti-strap dress that reached above her knee. She then combed her curly locks and tied it into a bun.

'_Hopefully Juvia is dressed right.._' She worried, biting her lip.

A few minutes later she decided to leave to the dining room, maybe she could even help Sebastian with dinner.

* * *

"Sebastian, have you seen Juvia?" Gray asked, wearing a normal pair of jeans and a black dress shirt. He never dressed up for dinner like how Ultear wanted, but he would make an exception for today.

"I believe Miss Lockser is in her room, sir," the man answered, "but I have informed her to join us soon."

"Alright then, I'll go get her." Gray said, thinking the excitement in his voice had gone unnoticed by the sneaky butler.

The dark-haired man turned and made his way towards the staircase, but when he looked up, he saw a beautiful sight.

Juvia stood at the top of the steps wearing a gorgeous, white dress that complimented the paleness of her skin. She smiled at Gray and gracefully came down the stairs, looking unimaginably stunning.

Gray's mouth was open and his throat dried up, causing him to choke. He watched her every move up until when she was at eye level with him and he averted his eyes from hers, while blushing.

"Y-You look.. nice." He stuttered, earning a blush from her as well. Juvia thanked him quietly and the two silently marched to the dining room where Sebastian had prepared two plates.

Gray took his seat before Juvia could speak, "Are you not eating with us, Sebastian-san?"

"No, Miss Lockser. Though I usually do accompany the Master in his meals, I decided to skip just this once." He replied with a wink in Gray's direction, and left the room.

* * *

Gray and Juvia ate without speaking, but both of them were sure that the erratic beating of their hearts could be heard and that seemed to be more than enough.

Half way through the meal Gray was the first to speak up, "How do you like it here?"

"Your house is very lovely, Gray-sama. Thank you for being so hospital."

'_She's being so formal.'_

...

They continued their meal in silence until the end.

This had been a new experience for the _both_ of them. Gray never had a girl over of dinner, and Juvia had never.. Well, been to a another person's house for this sort of reason.

We're they friends? Or did he just pity her? But they kissed! What did it mean? Juvia sighed, confused by the entire thing.

'_Maybe that's just how Gray-sama is.. He does have a lot of girls who like him and.. Maybe he needed someone trustworthy to relieve his stress?'_ Juvia contemplated.

They finished their meal and Juvia offered to take their plates to the kitchen, and did so.

After assisting Sebastian, Juvia quietly made her way through the enormous house to her room. She shut the doors and locked them, then changed into a night gown that she was given to by Sebastian, since she forgot hers.

When the petite girl looked in the mirror after she put on the outfit, she was in horror.

It was a small, black dress made of lace that barely covered her bottom. The neckline was more than teasingly low, while revealing a generous amount of cleavage.

Besides the length and short cut of the front, the dress hugged her womanly curves and made her feel beautiful, and she was okay as long as _nobody_ saw her in this.

'_I wonder why Sebastian-san would give this to me?'_ She questioned to herself.

_'Knock. Knock. Knock.' _

Uh oh. The hair's on the back of Juvia's neck stood up by the sound of someone at her door and she scrambled around the room. The girl finally came to the door and cracked it ever so slightly, whereas only her blushing face was showing.

"Juvia?" Gray asked, curious of why she was blushing.

"Y-Yes, Gray-sama?" Her voiced cracked. The tall man mischievously giggled and asked to enter, while Juvia stood wide eyed and nervous.

'_What should Juvia do?! This is Gray-sama's house! Juvia HAS to let him in, right? But Juvia can't!_'

Feeling defeat, the girl made up her mind and slowly, Juvia opened the door, while covering her heavy breasts with her hands.

Gray had no words for what he saw before him. Of course he was confused at _why_ she was wearing this and _where_ she got it from, but all he could do was stare and blush deep shades of red.

"Um.. Juvia is sorry for her indecency.. Sebastian-san just let her wear this to sleep in since she forgot her nightwear.. And.. This is Gray-sama's house so Juvia couldn't tell you not come in.. And.." The blunette tried her best to explain, while squeezing her legs together to prevent further embarrassment.

Gray looked away, knowing she was ashamed, but wanted to look back.

She was breathtakingly beautiful and everything about her was perfect. Juvia wasn't like any other girl he's met. She never threw herself at him and she never used her body to get his attention_ on purpose_.

On top of that, there was something else that attracted him to her. It was just.. She was _Juvia._

But at that moment, Gray's imagination could not stop forming explicit scenarios with the girl before him. Before he knew it, he was standing in front of the girl, with his hands placed on her voluptuous hips.

"Juvia.." He whispered, resting his forehead onto hers while gazing into her navy blue eyes. He closed his eyes shortly and placed a chaste kiss on the bridge of her nose.

Juvia felt warm and safe as Gray held her, but thoughts about what his true feelings toward her stopped the good feeling from escaping her chest.

She stood still and allowed him to kiss her face, then move to her lips, then to her sensitive neck. Although she had been used before, the thought of Gray using her made the girl feel uneasy, and more than the usual.

* * *

'_Why does Juvia feel like this all of a sudden?'_ She thought, as the man stroked her back and whispered things into her ear.

The man had given up on maintaining self-control and lifted the lightweight girl into his arms and walked towards the bed. Juvia continued to let Gray do as he wished, trying to fathom what this feeling she had in her chest was.

It was a deep and hungry feeling. Partially selfish, and partially giving. It made her want to see him smile, but only for her.

What was this?

She closed her eyes and felt Gray's large hands caress her waist.

That's when she understood what it all meant.

Juvia was falling in love with Gray.

* * *

**SORRY FOR ALL THESE OOC CHARACTERS. ヽ(ﾟДﾟ)ﾉ**


	6. Chapter 6: The Little Things

**I know I haven't updated in like 3 days and I'm SUUUUUUUUPER sorry!**

**I've been hella busy with school and I just couldn't find the time _or_ energy to write.**

**On top of that, I had some serious writers block,**

**But no more excuses! (Hopefully) **

**So,enjoy! ~ Also, I apologize in advance for how shitty this chapter is. **

* * *

_'Why does Juvia feel like this all of a sudden?' She thought, as the man stroked her back and whispered things into her ear._

_The man had given up on maintaining self-control and lifted the lightweight girl into his arms and walked towards the bed. Juvia continued to let Gray do as he wished, trying to fathom what this feeling she had in her chest was._

_It was a deep and hungry feeling. Partially selfish, and partially giving. It made her want to see him smile, but only for her._

_What was this?_

_She closed her eyes and felt Gray's large hands caress her waist._

_That's when she understood what it all meant._

_Juvia was falling in love with Gray._

* * *

Gray laid on top of the scarlet-faced girl and planted kisses along the her neck, moving down to the valley between her breasts.

Juvia whimpered, arching her back.

'_Juvia wants to please Gray-sama, but.. this pain._'

"Juvia.. You're so perfect." Gray whispered in between breaths, he lifted her shirt higher to reveal her flat and toned stomach which was beautiful just as every other part of her.

"Gray-sama," she stated, regaining her composure.

"Gray-sama, please stop.." Gray continued kissing her until he realized what she had just said. The man felt a pang of embarrassment swell throughout his core.

He raised himself from the shy girl and stared at her in confusion.

Silencing Gray, Juvia spoke up, "Gray-sama.. Juvia is sorry, but she cannot do this. Juvia does want to make Gray-sama to be happy, but this is.. She- sorry.." She whispered, using the thin sheet from the bed to cover her body. Gray nodded slowly and scolded himself.

'_How could I do that? I didn't even ask her what she felt, I just assumed that she was okay with the way things were going..'_ He shook his head and exited the room. Gray sighed feeling disappointed, mostly in himself. He almost _used_ Juvia, if she hadn't have said anything, what then?

At that moment he was no better than Lyon. That's when the raven-haired man made up his mind.

Gray would tell Juvia the truth.

* * *

Once Gray left the room she was staying in, Juvia shut her eyes and fell against the soft pillows beneath her.

'_What should Juvia do?_' She whined, recalling the eventful day that had just occurred and soon falling asleep.

* * *

_'Beep. Beep. Beep.'_ Gray's alarm clock chimed, awaking the groggy man. He rubbed his face with a hand and sat up onto the side of the bed, in only his boxers.

He stepped out of bed, shirtless, and began to walk out of his room, "Sebastian, what day is it?" He tiredly croaked, scratching his back.

"The day that follows Tuesday, sir."

...

"What day is it?" Gray repeated, too tired to even bother thinking.

"Wednesday, sir..." Sebastian stated, sighing in disappointment.

"So, I have school today?" Gray asked, eyes half-shut, trudging down the hall towards the staircase.

"Yes, sir.." The butler answered. Gray took a step down the stairs while speaking dreamily, "I can't wait to see-" his eyes opened completely in realization, "Juvia!"

The man almost forgot the events of the previous night and how said woman was sleeping at his house.

Gray turned heel and ran in the direction of her room, not sure why he was doing so.

'_Knock. Knock. Kno-_' the door slowly opened at his touch.

"Huh?" Gray peeked his head through the gap the door created. Juvia was no where to be seen. Gray quickly stepped into the room to search for the missing person, when he spotted a neatly written letter on the desk. He walked towards the table and read the note,

'_Gray-sama, _

_Juvia apologizes for leaving without giving you notice. Juvia decided to leave early to work on fixing her house, as this letter is being written the time is 5 o'clock in the morning. So, Juvia figured that Gray-sama wouldn't want to be woken up. :) Also, thank you for letting Juvia stay here last night, but Juvia does not plan to stay another night. If Gray-sama is wondering if it's because of last night.. It is. Juvia was reminded of something bad when Gray-sama touched her, and.. That cannot happen. See you at school._

_ -Juvia_'

Gray was speechless, or.. thoughtless. He fucked up and he knew it and she had just confirmed.

The man leaned his toned, bare back against the wall and slid down dreadfully slow with his head pressed into his palms.

* * *

Hours later, Gray arrived at school, keeping an eye out for a certain blunette. Not that he had anything to say to her, but because it was a habit.

Lately, Juvia had been the only thing on his mind, but he would make sure no one knew about that.

But the girl was not outside of the building so she must be inside, most likely helping a teacher or something. Typical of Juvia.

* * *

Gray entered his first period class, paying no attention to a pink-haired man calling his name, and sat in his seat.

Juvia wasn't there.

The man ran his hands through his black hair, irritated by his current state.

* * *

Seconds before the final bell ring, the source of Gray's problems ran through the door. Her hair was damp and she carried an extra bag with her.

Juvia apologized and took her seat next to Gray without saying a word.

* * *

After an entire fourty-five minutes of Mr. Dreyar's lecturing, Juvia stood to leave the room in a hurry.

"Ah.. Juvia, wait!" Gray called.

'_Oh no oh no oh no.._' Juvia winced.

"Um.. Juvia has to be somewhere, Gray-sama. Sorry." She apologized, pivoting and running through the doors.

Gray slumped back down against his desk, rejected once again.

"Oi, Slushie! Why are you so down?" Natsu asked, making a disgusted face at his and Erza's attention was caught and the two women turned to listen to Gray, "Nothing.."

This time, Lucy spoke, "Gray, obviously something is wrong. You didn't even call Natsu '_Flame Brain_' or '_Slanty Eyes_' when you answered him!" Erza nodded in agreement, although Natsu scoffed at her comment.

"I said it's nothing!" Gray slammed his fist on the wooden desk and marched out of the room. Leaving his three best friends shocked by his sudden outburst.

* * *

Meanwhile, Juvia was in the girl's locker room changing into a generic one-piece bathing suit and then hurrying to the pool room.

"All participants get in line and prepare yourselves." An authoritative voice ordered.

Juvia Lockser, the new girl, decided to get her mind off of a certain raven by joining the swim team. Well, trying out for now.

* * *

Not too far along, Gray began to wander the vast halls of Fiore High. Since second period is basically a catch up period for most people, the halls were crowded.

"Ahhhh! Gray-sama! Gray-sama!~" The mentioned man's head rotated quickly in the direction of the voice who used his name with the all-familiar honorific.

Oh.

It was just them.

Gray rolled his eyes at the_ Gray Fullbuster __Fan-club_.

The girls repeatedly called his name and Gray snapped. Only one person had the right to call him "Gray-sama" and none of those girls were that person.

"Do _not_ call me that." He grunted, turning into the athletic hall when he heard a noise. It sounded like water splashing around.

'_Huh, must be the swim team._' He pondered, standing in the doorway to the pool area.

"Next up, Juvia Lockser!" The announcer yelled. Gray's eyes widened.

'_Was this fate or what?_'

Juvia was trying out for the swim team? And she didn't even bother to tell him? Well, they were having.. problems, but that doesn't matter! This is important news.

The navy-eyed girl quickly strode to the edge of the pool then bending over into her starting position, which revealed much of her behind to a group of guys watching. And much was too much for Gray's liking in front of others, but he restrained himself from acting out for Juvia's sake.

Her long, creamy legs stretched down and as soon as the whistle blew she dived head first into the crystal clear water.

Gray was speechless, again. Why did this woman have this effect on him?

Juvia skillfully weaved through the water as though she _was_ the water, her blue hair gracefully swirling and moving along with her. Once she reached the other side, she turned back and ended where she had begun, grabbing the edge of the pool to hoist her wet body up. Her swimsuit hugged her every curve even more that before because of the moisture and she looked astonishingly beautiful to Gray when she shook her head to remove some water.

That moment, however, was ruined when a man with black hair similar to Gray's, wrapped a towel around Juvia and began walking with her with his arm around her shoulders.

Haru.

That was his name.

He and Gray shared the same amount of "fangirls" but that didn't mean they were the same.

Haru was a dick, ignored everyone, only did what he wanted.. Well, maybe they shared a _few_ qualities, but Gray admitted to being way less of a player than him. And he couldn't stand seeing Juvia with a man like that.

* * *

"You did great Juvia, your form was perfect. Honestly, I didn't think you'd do so amazing." Haru said, walking with Juvia to a bench.

The two sat down as Juvia thanked the man, slightly annoyed by his presence. Usually, Juvia would have loved to have company especially attractive company like Haru, but she felt bothered because it wasn't Gray.

Juvia had to admit, she was slowly falling head over heels for Gray which could _not_ happen. Once she started a romantic relationship, all of her past emotions would come seeping out just as they almost did on that one night with Gray.

Juvia felt selfish, but it wasn't like Gray even liked her. Right?

The blunette's eyes began to twinkle as she held her blushing cheeks.

"Juvia..? Juvia?" The other swimmer called, waving a hand in front of her face to get her attention.

"Oh! Juvia is sorry! What were you saying, Haru-san?" She apologized, released from her trance.

Haru stood up, taking Juvia with him, "Do you want to meet a few of my friends?"

The girl nodded, not knowing what else to do, as Haru led her to the same group of men who ogled at her. Standing across the room, Gray noticed Juvia making her way with the other man towards a cluster of more people he despised.

'_You have horrible taste in guys, Juvia..'_ Gray scoffed.

**Little did he know.**

* * *

Gray Fullbuster calmly sat amongst the crowd of people watching the swimming try outs while keeping an eye on Juvia.

"Are you creeping on that girl?" Gray jumped at the sudden question and turned his head to the asker, it was a faggotish man with dark hair.

"Uh.."

"Sorry. My name's David." He stated.

Gray furrowed his brows, "I'm Gray."

The other man remained silent for a minute before speaking, "So you were creeping on her?"

"Listen, kid, I'm not too keen on beating up freshmen, but if yo-"

"I can tell that you wanna talk to her, so instead of stalking her just go up there."

"Who the fuck do you think you are?"

Sigh. "Whatever man." Gray thought about what the man said and realized it was true.

As he stood up to face up to Juvia, his phone began to ring.

'_Lyon_' his caller I.D. read.

What did he want? Now of all times?

Gray pressed the device to his ear, "What is it?"

"Gray hurry, Ur's in the hospital.. And it's not good." A worried voice said.

The gray-eyed man felt a shiver travel up his spine, and began sprinting towards the exit. He was freaking out, and people were beginning to notice his actions.

* * *

"Look at that moron running!" One of the guys in the group Juvia was talking to stated. The girl focused her attention in the direction the man pointed in and her heart skipped a beat.

It was Gray.

And he was frantically trying to leave, looking frightened and pained. Juvia felt her heart clench at the sight and began to chase after the man.

'_Gray-sama.. Please be alright_.'

* * *

Gray dashed through the halls and struggled passed the crowds of people while unknowingly being followed by a certain swimmer.

'_This cannot be happening.._' He felt his chest rising at a faster pace and ran towards his motorcycle.

He couldn't lose anymore people.

* * *

**Free! Iwatobi Swim Club "reference" anyone?:D **


	7. Chapter 7: A Sudden Change of Events

**Yo, minna. Sorry for this really short chapter.**

**I actually have no excuse for it because I did it on purpose.**

**Enjoy.~**

* * *

_Gray dashed through the halls and struggled passed the crowds of people while unknowingly being followed by a certain swimmer._

_'This cannot be happening..' He felt his chest rising at a faster pace and ran towards his motorcycle._

_He couldn't lose anymore people._

* * *

Juvia, who was following the flustered Gray, had realized that she was in the middle of a crowded hall wearing only her swimsuit. The embarrassed girl turned back and ran into the pool area.

"All participants gather to be scored." The head announcer stated. As much as Juvia wanted to stay and find out if she had made the swim team, Gray seemed to be in trouble and Juvia had to be there for him.

"Haru-san!" Juvia called.

"Yes, Juvia?" The man replied.

"Please stay and listen to see if Juvia made the team," she said, while frantically putting on a pair of sweats and a a jacket over her one-piece.

"What? Why? Where are you going? Don't you want to stay and see yourself?"

"Of course Juvia does," she smiled, "but someone who Juvia cares about needs help." The woman quickly ran back out through the doors and desperately tried to spot the man she had abandoned her tryouts for. He had not been in sight until she heard the deep, low growl of his motorcycle as he drove out of the parking lot.

Considering the small size of the town, Juvia was able to conclude where he was going.

Fiore Medical Center.

Her heart ached.

* * *

"Lyon!" The dark-haired man screamed, barging through the doors of the emergency ward.

"Sir, please calm down." A staff member asked.

"No! Where the hell is she? Where's Ur?!" Before the woman could speak further, Lyon appeared in the threshold of a private examining room.

"Gray.."

"Lyon. Where is he?" The man struggled to maintain his composure, but it was so hard. Ur had raised him and taught him everything and most of all she _loved_ him, and he loved her.

Although Gray's biological parents were deceased, Ur was blood his mother. Blood not referring to technicalities, but to the bond that had been formed between them that was stronger than any actual blood.

"Gray.. She's," Lyon choked, facing his back towards Gray, "She's not okay. You need to see her, now." Gray's felt every muscle in his body loosen as he felt most of the life from his body leave.

"No.. She can't be.." He whispered, walking past Lyon who shut his tear-filled eyes.

* * *

When Gray entered the hospital room, he saw his mother laying on a white bed, dressed in all white.

"Gray.." She whispered, barely audible.

"Ur.. What happened?" He asked, rushing to the side of her bed.

"You know how clumsy I can be," she forced a sad smile onto her face, "..it hurts. Staying here hurts, but I prayed to God to let me see my two boys before I go."

"Stop talking like that.. You're not going anywhere. I'm not letting you, Ur. Not you or anyone else." He cried, feeling the tears he tried to suppress roll down his cheeks.

"Gray.. Don't be silly. Now listen to me," she said, "Once I'm gone, I want you and Lyon to take care of each other. Don't stray away from each other. You are family and I love you both dearly."

"No, no, _no.._ I said to _stop_ talking like this!" He pleaded, falling to his knees.

"Listen to me Gray, find a girl, graduate high school, go to college and make me proud. Most of all, always be happy." Her lips slightly curved upward as she let out her very last breath. Gray stayed silent, expecting to hear more, but when he looked up she laid lifeless in front of him.

He would have killed to hear her voice again. To hear her scold him, lecture him, or even call him names. But now he was alone again. Needing to be saved.

"Please.. I-I can't," He whispered, leaning away from the bed and sitting on his haunches.

* * *

Juvia stopped in front of the doors of the E.R. panting because she had jogged the entire way here.

The blue-haired girl walked through the doors and was assured she was at the right place when she noticed Lyon sitting in a chair in the waiting room with his palms pressed to his eyes.

"Lyon-san.. Is.. Everything alright?" Juvia asked, kneeling in front of the man.

He looked up at the girl, "I'm fine, but you should check on Gray. He's in there."

The hesitant girl slowly made her way to the entrance of the door she was directed to. Once she stepped inside, she saw the man who drew so much emotion from her leaned over himself on the floor. He looked so dead and lifeless, and the mere sight of that made her throat swell.

Then she noticed a woman with short, black hair lying on the bed. From the looks of it, she was not alive and Juvia figured that she was Ur by her age. Juvia knew from the little that Gray had informed her that Ur was his mother-figure.

Remembering the feeling of not having a mother motivated her to move towards him. She stood in front of Gray and leaned down, mimicking his position. The girl knew that no amount of words could save Gray from the wretched feelings he had inside of him at the moment, so she simply wrapped her arms around his shoulders while softly caressing his back.

At her touch, Gray lost all control and began to heavily sob against the crook of Juvia's neck. He tightly gripped her as he shuddered, releasing every bit of emotion onto her delicate frame.

The two remained in each other's arms, "She's gone.." He choked out.

"Shh.. Gray-sama, you don't have to speak, Juvia understands." She lovingly embraced him, trying to comfort him in any way that she can.

Juvia felt so bad. She had been trying to ignore Gray as much as possible to get over her feelings, and now he was so _fragile._ The man who she respected and looked up to for his tough character was falling apart.

* * *

Just as he had saved her that one, sunny afternoon on the first day of school, she definitely would rescue him from this pain.

Because she loved him.

* * *

**I'm sorry for the feels guys, but it's raining here meaning Juvi is sad. **

**THEREFORE CHAPTER 7 MUST BE SAD AS WELL.**


	8. Chapter 8: Comfort of Presence

**OH MY GOD, GUYS.**

**I WOULD HAVE UPDATED LAST NIGHT, BUT I WAS TOO HYPED FROM FAIRY TAIL COMING BACK.**

**Ugh, oh my god, it was so good. **

**The animation, the story, the _plot (as always, bless Mashima's fanserving soul)_ and everything was perfect!  
**

**I also really like the new opening and DAT GRUVIA THOUGH. (●´∀｀●) **

**If you haven't seen it yet, I won't spoil it, but you can watch it on:**

** .tv/1/**

**Anyway, enjoy this chapter. I _tried_ to put some fluff in it as requested.**

* * *

_Just as he had saved her that one, sunny afternoon on the first day of school, she definitely would rescue him from this pain. _

_Because she loved him._

* * *

An hour had passed and the three remained around the Fiore Hospital vicinity. Lyon and Juvia were quietly waiting outside and were waiting for Gray to return from his "walk".

After Juvia had tried to comfort him, the man had taken off into a thick forest area nearby the building, needing to be alone.

"Lyon-san.." The navy-blue eyed girl spoke, sitting on the steps.

"He'll be fine, Juvia-chan. Gray is strong."

"Juvia knows, but.. Is Lyon-san okay?" She turned her head towards the man sitting next to her, almost blushing at their close proximity.

"Honestly, I don't know," he started, "Unlike Gray, I saw Ur almost everyday so things will be strange without her around." Juvia pursed her lips in realization and without thinking placed her hand atop the man's.

Lyon sat still, confused by her actions, but also comforted, and gripped her hand.

* * *

Meanwhile, a mourning Gray was wandering among the towering trees. He used to come here a lot, just to think, especially after his parents had died. The pure smell of dirt and trees always pierced through his veil and allowed him to think.

As the wind swept through his hair, Gray found a certain, large oak tree and rested his hands on it's trunk, gazing at the marks carved into its flesh that were made by his very own hands when he was a mere eight years old.

The tall man stood and tried to regain every last bit of strength he had, forcing back the negative feelings. He had to be strong, because that is what Ur would want.

* * *

Lyon sighed and leaned his forehead against Juvia's head, both standing up as Gray appeared through the thick brush.

"Hey."

"Hey."

"Gray-sama.."

The three reunited and decided by themselves to part ways and return their homes, except for Juvia who was forced to go back to school by both of the men who "refused to let her suffer" because of them. The girl closed her eyes and walked down the white sidewalks, feeling the wind wrap around her frame.

Large drops of water plummeted from the sky, resembling the angst Juvia felt for being so.. useless. Gray had been hurt and though she tried, she did not succeed in making him feel better.

* * *

"Hey, Juvia, have you seen Gray?" Erza asked, accompanied by Natsu and the blonde.

"Ah.. Gray-sama went home.." She answered, anxious if whether she should tell his friends of what happened.

"Why?" They all asked in unison, surprising Juvia. The blunette shrugged and mumbled something then quickly ran away, leaving her and Gray's friends alone in confusion by her reaction.

'_Juvia feels so bad.. What does Juvia do?_' She pleaded to herself while rubbing her face with a hand. That's when a _wonderful_ plan sparked into her mind.

Juvia would get Gray back onto his feet as soon as possible.

Definitely.

* * *

'_Knock. Knock. Knock.'_

"Who the fuck is it?" Gray hollered, dragging his body to the door. Coincidentally, Sebastian had taken the day off so Gray was left to tend to his own duties.

The irritated man swung the door open, looking annoyed, when he realized who was standing at his door.

"Hello, Gray-sama! May Juvia come inside?" She cheerfully said, holding a large basket in front of her body.

"Uh.. Sure."

_'Why is she so happy?'_

"Juvia heard that Sebastian-san would not be here today so Juvia decided to help out." She stated, walking in the direction of the kitchen.

"Look, Juvia.. You really don't have to do anything for me. I'm okay." He said.

His eyes were so lifeless and she could tell from the look of his face that he was very stressed out.

That wouldn't sit with Juvia.

Waving her hand in front of herself, Juvia replied, "Please, Gray-sama, Juvia wants to!"

The man had given up, partially because he had no resolve to continue arguing and also because her presence made him feel slightly better, especially with the sudden turn of events.

He stared at the floor with his hands loosely places in his pockets.

"Gray-sama, please sit! Juvia will prepare dinner now."

Said man walked to the kitchen table and sat whereas he could see her. Watching her would definitely make him feel happier.

**Wait.. What? **

* * *

Juvia gracefully moved around his kitchen, preparing ingredients for the meal. She had on a black, knee-length dress that swayed as she walked to an fro, she also had on a cute light blue apron with snowflakes scattered about.

Her hair had been tied into a ponytail, framing her delicate face. Her very beautiful face with her dark, blue eyes that mimicked the color of the deep ocean.

Gray sat in awe at her utter perfection, like he always did when she was near him. He truly couldn't help himself.

"Gray-sama, hopefully you like Italian food." She said in between cutting vegetables.

"Why are you doing this?"

She stopped cutting.

"Because," she raised her head to look at him and sweetly smile, "Juvia cares about Gray-sama."

At that moment, the man watching her forgot about all of his troubles. All his pain. All of his problems. Juvia was the only thing he could see, hear, feel, _think._

He looked down at the table as his cheeks grew warm, not replying to her, as she resumed cooking.

* * *

"Gray-sama, dinner is ready!" She called to the man who had gone upstairs for a short moment to freshen up.

"Ah, coming." He said as he approached the dining room table.

The couple sat across from each other and in unison prayed, "Itadakimasu."

Gray was the first to take a bite and his eyes widened in response, "Juvia, this is amazing. Where did you learn to cook like this?" He questioned.

"Juvia just experimented with food and over time and figured this out," the girl smiled sadly, she could never tell her where she _actually_ learned this from. When she was at Phantom Lord, she had kitchen duty from time to time, but that was before she was enslaved.

"It's fucking awesome." He moaned, already half way done with the plate he received not more than a minute ago.

The girl giggled, "Thank you very much, Gray-sama."

And so the two continued to talk as Gray ate through three plates of Juvia's home-cooked meal.

He was.. happy. Even though Ur had passed away no less than six hours ago, he managed to smile, and it was because of the blue-haired woman sitting in front of him.

* * *

"Ah, I'm stuffed!" The man groaned, falling back onto his couch.

Juvia laughed at his actions and made her way to the couch across from him, "Gray-sama.."

"Hm?"

"Please remember that.. Juvia will always be here, okay? Even just to talk." Gray's eyes shifted to one of a more serious look, realizing the meaning behind her words. She was talking about Ur.

"I'm.. actually handling it better than I anticipated. I'll be okay."

Juvia stared into his eyes as if she was reassuring what he meant, "Good."

The dark-haired man closed his eyes, taking in the moment as he laid on the wide sofa. When he opened his eyes, there were a pair of blue orbs before him which, if he wasn't so relaxed, would have scared him. But he stared into them, perplexed and fascinated by the lovely shade that drew him in, closer and closer to the pale face surrounding it and he kissed it's forehead.

The owner of the beautiful pair of eyes smiled, not expecting to feel his warm lips on her skin, although she had invaded his personal space. The girl closed her navy eyes and sighed in enjoyment of the peaceful moment she shared with the man she loved.

"Juvia.. I-" Gray nervously said.

'_Knock. Knock. Knock.'_ The two nearly jumped from their positions by the sound someone at their door interrupting their intimate moment, as they blushed.

"Ah.."

"Um, Juvia will get it!" She squealed, running to the door shyly.

When she opened the door she saw something she did not expect.

"What are you doing here, Juvia?" A voice asked.

* * *

**OOO CLIFFY. Ψ(´▽｀)Ψ**


	9. Chapter 9: Baby Steps

**Hey guys, I've been ridiculously busy with school lately and whenever I'm this busy I develop a block.**

**So, I apologize ahead of time for this awkward (and cringe-worthy) chapter.**

*****WARNING: SLIGHT LEMON*** **

* * *

_"Ah, I'm stuffed!" The man groaned, falling back onto his couch. _

_Juvia laughed at his actions and made her way to the couch across from him, "Gray-sama.." _

_"Hm?" _

_"Please remember that.. Juvia will always be here, okay? Even just to talk." Gray's eyes shifted to one of a more serious look, realizing the meaning behind her words. She was talking about Ur. _

_"I'm.. actually handling it better than I anticipated. I'll be okay." _

_Juvia stared into his eyes as if she was reassuring what he meant, "Good." _

_The dark-haired man closed his eyes, taking in the moment as he laid on the wide sofa. When he opened his eyes, there were a pair of blue orbs before him which, if he wasn't so relaxed, would have scared him. But he stared into them, perplexed and fascinated by the lovely shade that drew him in, closer and closer to the pale face surrounding it and he kissed it's forehead. _

_The owner of the beautiful pair of eyes smiled, not expecting to feel his warm lips on her skin, although she had invaded his personal space. The girl closed her navy eyes and sighed in enjoyment of the peaceful moment she shared with the man she loved. _

_"Juvia.. I-" Gray nervously said. _

_'Knock. Knock. Knock.' The two nearly jumped from their positions by the sound of someone at the door interrupting their intimate moment, as they blushed._

_ "Ah.." _

_"Um, Juvia will get it!" She squealed, running to the door shyly. _

_When she opened the door she saw something she did not expect. _

_"What are you doing here, Juvia?" A voice asked._

* * *

Behind the door, three very _confused_ and surprised figures stood with their mouths agape.

"Erza-san, Lucy-san, Natsu-san.. Um, Juvia was just-" The blunette tried to explain.

"Who's at the door, Juvia?" Gray asked, walking towards the front door and stopping dead in his tracks once seeing his group of friends.

...

"All this time I thought you were gay, ice-brain! Ahahaha!" Natsu laughed, holding his stomach and earning an elbow in his side from the blonde beside him.

"It's not like that! Juvia promises it's not!" The blue woman frantically explained.

"Yeah, she just came to help me out since Sebastian took the day off." Gray mentioned, feelings a pang from Juvia's words.

"Well, may we come in?" Erza asked, looking from Juvia to Gray, who nodded in permission. The party of five made their way to Gray's living room quietly, except for Natsu, who yelled about Gray's "gayness."

"So, why are you guys here?" The dark-haired man asked, trying to ignore Natsu.

Lucy was the one to answer, "Juvia told us that you weren't feeling well when we asked why you skipped class, so we decided to check up on you."

"Oh.." He replied.

"What happened Gray?" Erza questioned sternly. Gray didn't answer her question and stared down at the floor, and Juvia took his silence as her cue to speak.

"Um.." She started, "Gray-sama's mother, Ur, she-"

"She died." Gray finished her statement coldly. Everyone, including Juvia, was surprised by his suddenness and could only sit shock. Continuing, Gray said, "Lyon called me around second period and told me she was in the hospital, and not too soon after I got there she was gone." Even Natsu was speechless, they had never seen or at least remembered seeing Gray look this upset before.

"Gray.." Erza spoke, being cut off by the man.

"Don't. I don't need your pity or anybody's." He stood up and walked out of the room. The sound of his feet hitting the stairs echoed and then an abrupt slamming of a door was heard.

"Juvia thinks Gray-sama needs to be alone right now.." She whispered, feeling useless once again.

"I agree.." Lucy and Erza voiced.

"Hey! What?!" Natsu angrily protested.

"Natsu.." Lucy squeezed his arm, leading him to the door with Erza and Juvia following. The three stood outside of the door, "Aren't you coming, Juvia?" Lucy asked.

"Juvia has to get her things, then she will leave." She stayed, smiling, and watched her friends leave. The navy-eyed girl slowly shut the door and went to the kitchen to do as she said she would when she felt a desperate and needy feeling arise in her chest to see Gray. Knowing she shouldn't bother him anymore, she decided to leave a note on his door then go home.

* * *

_'Gray-sama, _

_Juvia is sorry for annoying you and is leaving now. Please talk to Juvia when you can. _

_Love, Juvia.' _

The girl wrote this on a small sticky note and silently traveled up the large stairs and was now standing in front of Gray's bedroom door. She closed her eyes tightly and placed her small hand on the sturdy, wooden frame, feeling angst, when suddenly she heard a click and then saw the handle turn by itself. Frightened, she stepped backwards and stared at the man who opened the door from the other side.

"S-sorry, Gray-sama! Juvia didn't mean to bother you, she was just leaving!" The girl apologized nervously, then turned to run down the stairs when she felt a strong grip on her wrist pull her back. Gray placed both of his arms tightly around her shoulders, leaning his forehead against the top of her head for a few minutes.

"Juvia.." He mumbled.

"Gray-sama?" The girl whispered, perplexed by his sudden change, when she noticed the man embracing her move into the room and take her with him.

"Juvia, do you understand?" Gray asked, walking to his sleeping quarters with her hand within his.

"Understand what, Gra-" He sat on his bed and pulled her light body onto his, then he roughly pressed his lips to hers with more passion than ever. He kissed her for a while, not allowing either of them to breathe as Juvia returned his notion with an equal amount of force. Once they parted, Gray kept his eyes closed and fell back against the mattress.

"Do you understand?" He choked out, resting his arm on top of face which shielded his eyes. The girl awkwardly shifted her weight as she sat on his lap, not knowing what the man was asking her, and watched him breathe. His breath began to grow heavier and she noticed him growing tense.

That's when she realized that Gray was crying. That's when she realized what he was trying to make her see.

Gray wasn't the type of man to openly share his feelings with people, even the one's closest to him, but what he did just now was him showing Juvia what exactly was in his heart. And she felt it. Every ounce of pain and regret and loss that was eating at him from the inside out escaped from his lips onto hers. Juvia's face turned into a frown at her realization.

"Yes, Gray-sama, Juvia understands.." She said, placing her hands on his abdomen to balance herself as tears fell from her eyes. The man laying down felt the warm droplets seep through his shirt and looked up through his own tears to find Juvia leaning over him with her eyes overflowing.

"Why are you crying?" He sat up with his head lowered in embarrassment. The girl refused to answer him and placed her delicate hands on the sides of Gray's face.

"Make Juvia understand more." He stared at her in question.

"Gray-sama.. Make Juvia understand all of it." She repeated, staring deeply into his tear-blurred eyes. Gray and Juvia momentarily gazed into each others eyes before the girl was pulled towards the center of the man's bed with said man himself hovering over her. Their eyes never parted as Juvia's hands lightly traced patterns through his shirt, "Gray-sama.." She pleaded.

By the sound of her saying his name, Gray dove his head into the crook of the blunette's neck, earning a sharp gasp from the woman as she felt his hot mouth pressed on her throat. Gray placed soft kisses all along her, creating a path that moved lower and lower until he reached her chest. He grabbed the hem of her shirt and began to lift it up and over her head, then threw it off the bed. Next, he had to remove the small piece of fabric that separated him from her large was happening so fast, neither of them had time to think.

Juvia arched her back as his hands slid behind her, desperately trying to unclasp the hook and once succeeding throwing the nuisance somewhere else. Gray was awe-struck by the beauty lying beneath him. The girl shyly covered her breasts and blushed deeply in embarrassment, and it added to the spectacular sight he saw.

"Juvia.. S-show me." He stuttered, feeling a blush creep onto his face as well. Juvia slowly removed her hands, allowing the man to see her bare flesh, which made Gray's hunger grow even stronger. Since Gray had little to no experience himself, he fidgeted and nervously moved one hand onto her breast and began to caress it. Juvia had never felt so amazing before, all the times she had encountered sexual activities, she was always being forced to do something _but-_

The girl's eyes went wide as all of her memories flowed back into her consciousness.

She remembered all the pain and she could feel it, every spot that they beat her and touched her. Tears welled up at the corner of her eyes and she began to breathe harder and Gray noticed. The man quickly stopped himself and sat up above her.

"Juvia? Juvia, what's wrong?" He asked worriedly, hands on either side of her face. The girl couldn't even look him in the eyes as the tears freely escaped and she began to wail while curling into a ball. Gray was so confused by her sudden change, but felt that it was his fault.

"J-Juvia I'm sorry, I didn't know you would.. I.. didn't mean to." He desperately explained, moving to her side.

"Gray-sama," She whispered in between breaths, "I can't."

At that moment, Gray realized that there was something more. She wasn't just nervous or scared of him, it was something bigger and he had to find out, but for now he could only try to console her. His muscular arms reached around her waist and pulled her wracking body against his chest, which was with no shirt, as she sobbed, clinging to Gray's shoulders.

Juvia had finally broke, after holding it in all the years. She had experienced brutal moments and then built a wall to separate her old self and new self, but now all remnants of her barrier had been knocked down. Although she wanted to be alone and she wanted to runaway from it all, she looked to Gray for courage. He had just endured the pain of a death of a loved one, yet here he was, trying his utter best to comfort her. As Juvia continued to think of Gray, she slowly felt her sanity returning.

"G-Gray-sama.." She whispered into his chest, not moving her head as it was buried deep into him.

"Juvia, what happened?" He pleaded, his tone different than she had ever heard before. The man clutching her sounded almost desperate, and extremely soft.

Since when did Gray have a side like this? Hell, he didn't even know he had a soft side.

"Juvia will explain some other time, Gray-sama," she started to explain, "Right now, Juvia needs to think deeply.." Gray lifted her face to him and acknowledged her request, then slowly slid off of his bed.

"Where is Gray-sama going?" She asked, her legs pulled up in front of her chest, with blue waves disheveled atop her tear-stained face.

Gray sweetly smiled, "I'm letting you think, Juvia."

"But-"

"No 'buts' only butts," he joked, attempting to cheer the woman up, "If you need me, I'll be downstairs." Juvia didn't respond, she was confused by what was going on. She believed that she had implied that she would be leaving to go home, but the situation had shifted and now she was left alone in Gray's room.

In exhaustion, the blurry-eyed girl sighed and tried relax against one of Gray's pillow, inhaling his sweet scent that arose from her surroundings.

Juvia began to ponder about a multitude of things, for example, what she would be doing right now if Gray hadn't been here for her, if she had never met him, if she never escaped. Countless possibilities scrambled throughout her brain, and before she realized it, the girl had fallen asleep in the man's room.

* * *

_'Beep. Beep. Beep.' _

_'What is that?'_ Juvia thought, half awake.

'_Beep. Beep. Bee-_' the sound of a button being hit had ceased the annoying sounds that disrupted the girl from her slumber.

Wait a minute. Who turned it off?

Juvia's eyes fluttered open, not recognizing the setting around her. Black sheets, dark windows, expensive furniture. None of this added up and was certainly not _hers._

That's when her sense of touch had finally woken up, and she felt a relaxing warmth that she wanted more of. Next the blue-haired girl felt a weight on her waist, which was also warm. Then finally, sparking realization, the girl felt a deep, hot breath lingering around the back of her neck.

_ 'Oh no.' _

Peeking ever-so-slightly over her shoulder, Juvia saw Gray's head, directly behind hers, and he was _holding_ her. Their legs were intertwined and he kept her in place, against his half-naked body, with a strong arm. Juvia's face flushed and she felt her soul threatening to escape her body.

Shifting her weight and trying to escape, Juvia slithered from Gray's grasp to her best abilities, but failed as his arm secured her in place.

"Gray-sama.." She whispered, attempting to wake the man so she could get up, even though that would mean embarrassing herself and quite possibly him.

"Gray-sama.. Wake up. Okite kudasai.."

"Hn."

"Gray-sama, please wake up."

"But Juvia.." He whined, nuzzling her neck, causing the girl to squeal.

...

At the sound of the creature he was snuggling making a noise, Gray's eyes flew open.

Fuck. He was totally _cuddling_ her. **The** **Gray Fullbuster** was cuddling. But he didn't want to stop, she was just so warm, and soft, and..

"Gray-sama? Are you awake?" The man she was referring to removed his clasp around her waist and stretched in bed while turning the other direction,

"Yeah."

"Uh.." Juvia was lost for words as she saw a shirtless Gray's muscles clench and flex beneath his smooth skin.

"Goodmorning." She managed to force out, feeling like an idiot and mentally slapping herself. Gray smiled and greeted her back as she slowly rose to her feet and apologized for intruding on him. Of course, Gray disagreed and said that she "was and will never be a bother" to him, which made her heart beat irregularly.

* * *

"Juvia will leave now. Sorry for falling asleep here, Gray-sama." She bowed and gathered a few of her belongings that ended up in the room.

"Where do you think you're going?" He stated bluntly.

"Juvia is going home."

"Oh?" He asked.

"Um.. Juvia thinks so. Unless something happens along the way and Juvia dies, then Juvia will not be going home but to the light." She giggled, turning to the door.

"Juvia."

She stopped.

"I want to know."

"Know what, Gray-sama?" She cheerfully questioned, knowing all too well what he truly intended to know, but regretting it.

"Tell me what happened last night." He clearly ordered, standing behind the woman.

* * *

**Ahugeerhhhgh, I HATE HOW THIS TURNED OUT.**

**Review? That would help a lot. **

**But anyway, thanks so much for all the follows and favorites, guys. It means a lot. c:**

**I WILL TRY REALLY HARD FOR CHAPTER 10. HAVE FAITH IN ME.**

**[As much as I LOVE lemons, I never really realized _how_ uncomfortable I would feel writing them, lol.]**


	10. Chapter 10: The Truth

**SORRY. I'm SO sorry for not updating sooner.**

**I was sick for the past few days, but I feel better now so please accept this chapter as a token of my apology. **

**Also.. DID YOU GUYS SEE HOW MY JUVI-CHAN HAD AN ENTIRE SCREEN TO HERSELF AT ONE POINT IN THE SECOND NEW EPISODE. (177?)**

**OH MY JUVI. 3**

**But I can't wait for next Saturday. c:**

* * *

_"Juvia will leave now. Sorry for falling asleep here, Gray-sama." She bowed and gathered a few of her belongings that ended up in the room. _

_"Where do you think you're going?" He stated bluntly. _

_"Juvia is going home." _

_"Oh?" He asked. _

_"Um.. Juvia thinks so. Unless something happens along the way and Juvia dies, then Juvia will not be going home but to the light." She giggled, turning to the door. _

_"Juvia." She stopped. _

_"I want to know." _

_"Know what, Gray-sama?" She cheerfully questioned, knowing all too well what he truly intended to know, but regretting it. _

_"Tell me what happened last night." He clearly ordered._

* * *

"Gray-sama, please.." She whispered, clutching her bag tightly. She was scared, not necessarily because Gray was asking such a personal question but because she herself had changed so much since meeting him. Juvia didn't know what _she_ would do, she was someone entirely new.

Gray walked in front of the door, "I get it, you don't trust me." He said. The harshness of his voice stung Juvia.

"No.."

It wasn't like that. It definitely was _not_ like that.

Before she could part her lips to deny his statement, the man began to leave the room, but stopped in his tracks for no apparent reason.

"I just.. I don't know, Juvia. I really.. _Fuck._ I don't know." He sighed, running a stressful hand through his spiky black hair. He turned to face her with pure pain in his eyes. So much had been going on. First Ur, and now the one person he actually felt close to was closing up on him.

Was it the way that he was? Did everyone simply want to leave him? Was he really that repelling?

Gray's anger welled up, mixing with the plethora of grief previously built up and he threw a heavy punch at a wall of his bedroom causing a dark hole to form, similar to the one he felt in his chest. Juvia shrieked and covered her mouth to suppress it.

"Gray-sama is angry.." She stated, curling her arms toward her chest in fear, knowing she had done this to him.

"Of fucking course I am, Juvia," he yelled, facing the blunette woman whose eyes were beginning to well-up with tears.

"Do you not trust me? Is that it? After I actually tried to make it clear to you that I care?" Juvia stepped back, reminded of her days at Phantom when men would corner her in rage and threaten her life, as well as abuse her.

"Please don't hurt Juvia.." She winced, lowering her head while clinging to herself.

"What?" Gray choked out, confused by her statement.

'_Why the fuck would she say that?_'

"Please.." She repeated, collapsing to the floor.

Her brick wall continued to break, though she tried so hard to protect it. Nothing was safe in this world, was it?

Gray stared perplexed, eyes plastered to her frail body crouched over on the floor, when he realized just how out of control he had gotten. He punched a hole in the wall and screamed at Juvia, who was now crying. But her words echoed through his mind, '_Please don't hurt Juvia.._'

"Why would you say that?" He said, kneeling in front of the girl. His sudden change in demeanor surprised Juvia and she stared into his dark, dark eyes.

"I will never hurt you." She continued to stare.

"Okay? I will _never_ hurt you." He swore, with absolute sincerity. The petite girl nodded and gathered her courage to speak.

"Since Gray-sama p-promised to never hurt Juvia, Juvia will promise to tell him everything." She stuttered, already feeling anxiety.

"Hold on." Gray stood from his spot on the floor and jumped to the door to close it, then lock. As the man returned, he sat comfortably on the floor, facing Juvia.

"Where should Juvia start?" She cleared her throat, without needing to recall the past because the memories were already back, fresh in her mind as if they had only occurred yesterday.

"Definitely not from the middle." Gray said.

Too nervous to identify Gray's attempts to lighten the mood, she continued, "Well, Juvia was raised in an orphanage. It was called 'R_ainy-day Daycare Center,_' being that it was actually a daycare, but mothers and fathers would drop their children off and never return, thus allowing the place to become an orphan home." Gray watched her as she spoke, listening to every word carefully.

"Um.. Juvia was one of the orphans and she spent most of her early life there. It wasn't lonely, there were lots of children, but then again Juvia didn't even know what it meant to be lonely because she was alone all her life. Other kids came and went as they got new families, but Juvia was always left behind. After being through many.. _cycles_ of children, she began to feel unwanted, but that changed when one day a man came to adopt Juvia." Her lips didn't twist upwards as Gray expected.

"Juvia was only twelve years-old then, and instead of being taken to a new home, Juvia was brought to a place called '_Phantom Lord'_," the woman began to shiver and Gray placed his hand upon her to reassure her that he was there listening.

"There were other kids there, too, and Juvia thought it was another foster home. But then she was taken to her room. It was a dark place, with only one small window. The floors were concrete just like the walls and there was no bed, only remnants of fabric scattered on the floor. Juvia remembers how small she felt in the room..

"On the first night, Juvia was.." She breathed deeply, " Juvia was chained at the ankle. It was a cuff and it connected to the center of the room, which barely allowed her to move. So many nights Juvia spent in that cold cell, wishing she was still at the orphanage.. Since Juvia was young, she believed that it was her fault for wanting a home that she ended up there.. Anyway, Juvia was forced to work most of the time. It wasn't that bad, just cooking and cleaning, really.. But one day they didn't make Juvia do her chores, saying that she had a better surprise. Later that day, an old-looking man with a cane came to Juvia's quarters. Before even saying anything, that very man hit Juvia on the head with his stick, and other places. Oh, Juvia wished she was **dead.** She wanted to be. It was all her fault, for being selfish and wanting to leave the orphanage, but even-so young Juvia tried to remain strong and fought back.." Gray's grip on her hand tightened.

"After the first beating, many more came and eventually.. More men came as well, but instead of just hitting Juvia they.." She stopped speaking and froze, eyes cold and glazed over with hatred. Gray too was feeling hate, and he barely heard half of it.

"Those men raped me," his heart skipped several beats and Gray's eyes seared. Before he could comment, Juvia continued to tell her tale.

"It happened for a few months, and Juvia dealt with it just like every other girl there did," her eyes flowed with hot tears and Gray felt his sting too, but mainly in frustration.

"Then one day the police busted Phantom Lord and all of the girls, including Juvia, were set free. That's how she met Gajeel-kun and now Juvia is here."

...

"Gray-sama," she whispered as she softly placed her shaky hands on his chest as the tears grew more powerful, "It hurt so bad, Gray-sama.." Gray unconsciously pressed his forehead to hers. She had been there for him when he cried, so there was no way in _hell_ that he would allow for anymore of her precious tears to fall.

"It hurt.." She whimpered, over and over again. Gray wrapped his arms tightly around her and embraced her with every ounce of his being.

"Juvia," he spoke in a deep voice, "As long as I'm around, I'll protect you. No one will hurt you and, by god, if they do I'll _kill_ them." Juvia closed her eyes and released all of the emotions she had pushed back onto her Gray. He rubbed her back softly as he had already pulled her in between his legs and she was curled up against him.

"Never again, Juvia, will I ever let you get hurt." Her breathing became lighter and Juvia came to realize one thing: She was finally safe, in a world that wasn't.

* * *

Quite a bit of time had passed and the two had fallen asleep in each others arms, laying on the floor. Juvia on top of Gray's chest, while his arms draped over her sleeping body. It was a truly peaceful moment until a familiar thud woke the pair from their slumber.

'_Knock. Knock. Knock._'

"Master Gray, are you awake? You must leave now if you want to arrive at school on time." A masculine voice stated.

Two sets of eyes, dark blue and gray, shot open, staring at a clock that rested on a table nearby.

In vibrant blue, the time read 8:30.

Fuck.

Juvia quickly stumbled to her feet and helped Gray to his feet.

"Gray-sama, we're going to be late!" She squealed in worry.

"Juvia, what ever shall we do?!" He jokingly cried, in the same way that she had. The navy eyed girl stood with her mouth agape in shock as Gray laughed.

"Um.. Master Gray, I assume Miss Lockser here too?"

"Yeah, Sebastian. Can you start up the shower?"

"Yes, master." Gray gently grasped Juvia's hand and led her out of his room and across the hall to another room which definitely had feminine charm by the decorative, dark pink wall paint.

"Is this Ultear-san's room?" She curiously asked looking around as she was dragged.

"Yeap," Gray replied, opening the door to a closet which revealed a surprising amount of clothing, "Pick what you think will fit you and you can get ready in the bathroom next door."

"Uh.. But aren't these Ultear-san's clothes?"

"Yes, Juvia. Now hurry and get dressed, or we're gonna be late." He chuckled at her indecisiveness.

"But-" Gray gave her a chaste kiss which was, by her reaction, the best way to get her to stop worrying about the details. The man turned and left the room with a light blush tinting his cheeks.

'_Did I really just kiss her like that?_'

* * *

Ten minutes later, Juvia and Gray were hopping down the stairs and making their way out the door, almost late for school which would start in five more minutes. Gray jumped onto his trusty steed and waited for Juvia to catch up. She was having a little.. trouble, to say at least, with Ultear's clothes. Juvia wore a black leather skirt with matching boots and a deep purple shirt that outlined her cleavage. She was struggling to walk too, and was all the more embarrassed to be seen in such an outfit.

Gray smirked, she didn't looked that bad. In all honestly, she looked hot. Extremely hot. Just the thought of Juvia riding Gray's bike while clinging to him, clad in leather, made him lick his lips.

'_Snap out of it Gray, dammit_.' He cursed himself, starting his motorcycle and speeding off to school with Juvia at his back.

* * *

The two had arrived at school just as the final bell rang, sadly, they would still be late. Gray held onto the blue haired girl to help her walk as they rushed to first period.

* * *

"Gray Fullbuster." Mr. Makarov called, taking roll as his eyes scanned his classroom when suddenly the door busted open.

"I'm here." Gray announced walking in with a rather red-faced Juvia behind him. The first thing the rest of the students noticed was the fact that Gray was holding the girl's hand. Most of the students didn't even know her name, yet here she was hand-in-hand with the "_hottest guy in school._"

Secondly, the crowd that filled Mr. Makarov's homeroom class, mainly the male population, noticed the attire the blue girl was wearing. Her clothes extremely form-fitting and short, and she was deliciously panting and blushing. It was highly attractive and many men ogled at her. Gray noticed their wandering eyes and glared in their direction.

"You are aware that you are late, Gray." His teacher disappointingly stated.

"Yeah, yeah. I know, but if it helps we actually woke up early then fell back asleep."

_'Shit.' _

All eyes went wide.

Did he really just say that in front of the entire class?

* * *

**Thank you for reviewing! **


	11. Chapter 11: Blossom

**FFS, I just spent the last 30 minutes trying to find a loop hole to escape the glitch this site is having.**

**But I finally got it! So if anyone needs help with it just PM me or something. c:**

**Anyway, enjoy this chapter. I don't feel like I ****delivered, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder or some shit like that so _ENJOYYYY~_**

**Also, Happy Good Friday! And it really was a _good_ Friday since a new FT chapter AND episode came out.**

**So happy~~~ **

* * *

_"Gray Fullbuster." Mr. Makarov called, taking roll as his eyes scanned his classroom when suddenly the door busted open._

_"I'm here." Gray announced walking in with a rather red-faced Juvia behind him._

_The first thing the rest of the students noticed was the fact that Gray was holding the girl's hand._

_Most of the students didn't even know her name, yet here she was hand-in-hand with the "hottest guy in school."_

_Secondly, the crowd that filled Mr. Makarov's homeroom class, mainly the male population, noticed the attire the blue girl was wearing._

_Her clothes extremely form-fitting and short, and she was delicously panting and blushing. It was highly attractive and many men ogled at her. Gray noticed their wandering eyes and glared._

_"You are aware that you are late, Gray." His teacher disappointingly stated._

_"Yeah, yeah. I know, but if it helps we actually woke up early then fell back asleep."_

_'Shit.'_

_All eyes went wide._

_Did he really just say that in front of the entire class? _

* * *

Gray froze upon realizing his mistake.

**Fuck.**

"Did he just?" Levy whispered to her partner, Gajeel, who assumed this would happen sooner or later and sighed.

"It's not like that!" Juvia exclaimed, surprising the rest of the class, "Gray-sama and Juvia are not like that."

"Ahem." Their teacher coughed, proceeding to tell his students to take their seats and be quiet so he can actually teach.

The blunette and the raven walked quietly to the back of the class, Gray's hand still wrapped around Juvia's.

Class started and Mr. Makarov began to lecture and Juvia, being the studious student she was, vigilantly took notes. Gray, being himself, sat back in his seat, only listening and occasionally looking over to the girl next to him.

As the girl transcribed information onto the paper, she remembered that Sebastian had handed her a bento with breakfast and pulled it out from her bag.

She carefully opened the box and shyly pushed it in front of Gray, he then looked up at her blushing face and smiled, proceeding to eat the food Juvia kindly offered.

* * *

After first period, Juvia had a great difficulty passing through the halls without being congratulated on her "relationship with Gray" or being glared at and threatened. The poor girl had to stop several times to explain that they were not dating OR sleeping together, but her efforts were ultimately a waste.

Gray, on the other hand, dealt with hordes of girls sobbing or angry with the "news," however he completely ignored their antics because he didn't completely disapprove of the idea but the man decided he would have to find Juvia at lunch to apologize.

* * *

"Ah.. Time for lunch at last. Juvia is so tired." The girl found the tree she usually sat under during this time and collapsed against the trunk. She was exhausted, on top of her normal work load she now had a lot of drama regarding Gray to deal with.

"Juvia."

Said woman raised her head from the flowers, "Gray-sama! Wait.. No, you can't be here!"

"What? Why not?" He questioned, sitting down in front of Juvia, clearly not affected by her statement.

"Um.. If Gray-sama is seen around Juvia then people will think.." She mumbled, staring down at the ground beneath her legs and fumbling with her fingers.

"I don't care what they think." He stated, laying down against the daisies and closing his eyes.

"Juvia does though." She stated.

"What do you mean?"

"Juvia.. is not entirely sure, but she knows it's for a good reason."

"Ah."

"..."

Gray tightened his close on his eyes frustratedly.

Did she still not get it? After all this time? Or did she not care? Was she only pretending to care in PITY?

"Fine." Gray sat up quickly, putting an end to the relaxing aura.

Juvia blinked.

"If that's how you feel, then fine." The dark eyed man stood up and began to walk towards another table with a few people Juvia did not recognize.

'_Gray-sama is angry.._' She frowned.

* * *

The rest of Juvia's day passed by dreadfully slow, but school was finally over and she could relax in her favorite state: liquid. The girl opened her swim locker and pulled out a brand new bathing suit that was provided by the school.

Juvia checked to make sure none of the other girls were around and quickly slipped into the one-piece, studying the way it looked on her when her mind began to wander towards a certain someone.

_'Maybe Gray-sama just needs some space? Yes, that must be it._' She thought and opened the doors to the Fiore High Aquatic Center. The scent of chlorine filled her as she slowly joined the group of girls waiting in line.

Juvia was excited to clear her mind.

* * *

Meanwhile, Gray Fullbuster had been feeling quite angst, what did Juvia mean? Did she.. Friendzone him? No, she couldn't have.. But..

Sigh. Gray leaned against a wall and wiped his face, he was clueless with this kind of stuff. Just then he heard a familiar voice, "Gray, are you alright?"

It was Erza, and she was holding a box of sweets, most likely for Jellal. The redhead never announced their relationship to anyone, but it was clear that they were romantically connected.

"I don't know myself."

The girl pursed her lips, this was unusual behavior for Gray, "Is it because of.. Ur?"

"No, I'm okay with that issue now. Ur would want me to be happy, not depressed."

"So, what's the matter?"

Gray sighed once more, could he tell her? Ah, what the hell, Erza would pry the information out of him one way or another.

"It's Juvia."

"Ah, yes. I've noticed that you two have been quite close lately."

"I guess, but.." He paused to think, "She.. Sort of turned me down, I THINK. I still don't know. Girls are so fucking confusing."

"Oh, I see. Well, was she straightforward with it? Or are you just assuming that she did that?"

The dark-eyed man's eyes opened and he stared at the floor, "She didn't flat out say she only wanted to be friends."

"Then what are you doing here? Go find her." Erza smiled and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

Gray's heart sped up, he had to find Juvia and tell her everything. He had to SAY what he felt this time. He would not mess up this time.

The man grinned at Erza and took off down the hall.

"Uhh, Gray?" Erza stammered, "Juvia's in swim practice."

He harshly pivoted and began to run in the opposite direction, past the cafeteria, down the athletic hall, and finally he was sprinting towards the pool facility when suddenly he crashed into something.

It was another person, who was around the same height as him.

"Hey. Watch it- _Gray?"_

Gray looked up from the collision and immediately recognized the man he bumped into.

"Lyon," He glared his eyes, "Why are _you_ here?"

The white-haired man replied, "I could ask the same thing of you, but I'm too busy watching Juvia-chan swim. You know, she's a wonderful swimmer. And the way her hair floats around her when she's in the water makes my-"

Lyon was slammed back against the wall with Gray's hand fisted around the collar or his shirt, "I asked WHY, not what."

"Gray, Gray. No need to get so rilled up. Like I said, I wanted to watch Juvia and then ask if she wanted to go out to eat after she's finished."

"What?" Gray hissed, his voice deep and tainted with jealousy.

"Do I need to repeat myself? I said: I. WANT. TO. TAKE. JUVIA. ON. A. DATE." He smirked.

Gray remained quiet, he didn't know why he was doing what he was. Why did he get so angry? Why did he feel so territorial over Juvia?

As Gray tried to collect himself Lyon began to ramble about how much he and Juvia were meant to be. All this added to the growing flame that Gray tried to suppress, but he couldn't do it and his fist met with Lyon's cheek.

Lyon, not wanting himself to be beat up by his baby "brother" again, threw his own fist at Gray.

The two began to fight. _Hard._ Blood was seeping from Gray's mouth and Lyon already had a black eye and his face was heavily bruised.

How far would these boys go for one girl?

* * *

Juvia emerged from the pure water as droplets bounced off of her, when she heard commotion coming from the entrance.

"There are two guys fighting in the hall!"

"Woah! It's Gray! Gray Fullbuster and some hot guy with white hair!"

Juvia's heart dropped.

What on earthland was happening?

She draped a towel over her head and ran towards the door and past the other girls, opening the doors to reveal a heavily beaten up Lyon under a furious Gray.

"Gray-sama! Stop!" She screamed, falling to her knees beside them, attempting to restrain the unrelenting man.

"Stop it, please!" Juvia tried to grab Gray's hand and when she did the man suddenly stopped and looked at her. Just then, as he stared at Juvia's tear- streamed face and the crowd of people behind her and the man whom Ur told he needed to protect, did he realize what he had just done.

"Juvia I-"

"Enough, Gray." She stated, eyes staring down, "Look at all of this. And for what? What could possibly be so important to _hurt_ your own.. brother?"

...

_**You.**_

"Juvia does not like this at all." She whispered, wiping her face. Gray stood up and touched his own face, noticing the blood on his hand. Had he gone overboard? But the things Lyon said, he couldn't let him do that. He had to TELL her.

"Juvia, listen-"

"No, Gray. Juvia doesn't want to listen." She stared up at him with sadness in her eyes, then turned to tend to Lyon. Her delicate hands helping him stand up.

"Juvia will take Lyon-sama to a safe place, please excuse her." She politely said to her teammates who only nodded their heads in shock.

* * *

Juvia was walking down the hallway to the nurse's office with Lyon draped on her. He was heavy. Everything was just so _heavy._ She sighed, laying the battered man on the bed, allowing the nurse to do her work.

* * *

Later on Lyon was taken home, to Gray's home, by Ultear. It was the first time Juvia had met Ultear. She had beautiful, dark hair just like Ur and she was very mature and kind. Luckily, Juvia wasn't wearing the woman's clothes anymore, otherwise that would have been an awkward first impression.

Now Juvia had finished up all of her swim team work and was going to head home. Well.. Probably Gajeel's home.

The blunette stepped onto the white, concrete sidewalks and began her trek feeling guilty.

_'Juvia yelled at Gray-sama.. And Gray-sama looked so sad. It's all Juvia's fault. Lyon-san said that they were fighting because of Juvia._'

Sigh. The girl stopped and picked a white flower off of a nearby tree, it reminded her of Lyon, so she decided she would check on him first.

Although Juvia felt bad for Gray, his actions were still not just.

* * *

_'Knock. Knock. Knock._'

The door opened, "Miss Lockser?"

"Please, Sebastian-san, call me Juvia." She smiled.

"Juvia-sama." He stated, causing Juvia to blush slightly. No one had ever referred to herself as -sama before.

"No, no! The '-sama' is not necessary, Sebastian-san!"

The slender butler smirked, "Well, Juvia-sama does mean Lady Juvia, correct? And I consider you the lady of this manor."

"Sebastian-san, Juvia does not even live here. There is no need." She continued to blush, "Oh, but Juvia was wondering if Lyon-san was here?"

Sebastian curiously stared, why was she looking for Lyon?

"Why yes, Lyon is upstairs in his room. Shall I escort you?"

"Yes, please."

The two traveled up the grand staircase and Sebastian showed Juvia the door to Lyon's room, which she gently knocked on.

"Come in."

The blue haired girl turned the knob slowly and stepped inside, "Hello, Lyon-san."

The man smiled brightly and sat up in his bed, "Juvia-chan!" He leapt out and ran to the girl.

"Juvia came to check you, are you feeling alright?" She asked, smiling.

"Ahhhh! Juvia-chan cares about me! Yes! Yes, I feel better now that you're here!" He yelled, quite loudly, which surprised the girl.

"Hey, why the fuck are you being so loud?" A voice asked from the other side of the door, which grew louder.

Juvia's eyes widened.

**Uh oh.**

"Can't a man get some peace and quiet around he-" Gray froze in his tracks, staring at the blunette in Lyon's room.

The air was filled with tension as the three remained quiet.

...

"W-What are you doing here, Juvia?" Gray asked.

"Uh. Well, Juvia was.. Just leaving!" She turned and rapidly headed for the door when she felt a hand gently reach her wrist.

"Juvia. Stay."

The girl gulped, feeling anxious. Gray wanted her to stay even though she had upset him and that was something Juvia didn't have the strength to do.

"Gray-sama, Juvia really needs to go.." She whispered. Gray bit his lip and released his grip on her, what else was he supposed to do?

Juvia looked at the man who had just set her free and walked out of the door. She was feeling many things at the moment; pain, sadness, guilt, fear, _love._ What did any of it mean? What should she do?

Taking a deep breath, the girl opened the front door and proceeded to step onto the pavement that would take her to who knows where. Juvia's long hair flowed in the wind as she her mind wandered.

_'Juvia knows that Gray-sama cares, and Juvia cares about Gray-sama. That is why she cannot interfere anymore. Juvia doesn't deserve Gray-sama.' _

* * *

"Why did I let her leave?" Gray thought aloud.

"I don't know, you tell me." Lyon said, walking back to his bed.

"What?"

"Don't ask me 'what,' I'm the one who should be saying that. Now, if you want to go after her then go."

"Are you serious?"

"Gray, you're practically my younger brother. What type of big brother would I be if I didn't want you to be happy?"

Gray smirked with his motivation rejuvenated and turned to run out of the room, stopping at the door.

"Thanks, Lyon." He stated, then sprinted out of the room, down the stairs and to the front door. Gray swung open the door and leapt, his eyes struggling to find the girl. This time, he would definitely tell Juvia everything.

No distractions.

* * *

Juvia was about a block away, walking through a large field that was filled to the brim with daisies, her favorite. The sight of the flower made the girl think of Gray, about how she was sitting under that massive oak tree at lunch submerged in them when Gray first saw her cry. He was so kind, and gentle with her. All he did was care for her and Juvia was turning away for her own selfish reasons in the name of protecting him.

Protecting him from what? From herself?

Juvia stopped walking when she noticed that her cheeks felt cold. She was crying, and for once it wasn't about her past. This was for Gray-sama.

Boy, did she really travel far. Sometime around now last year she was trying to get onto her feet after being a forced captive, and now she was crying over a man.

Her fingers traced the wet lines as she looked to the sky.

_'Please. Help Juvia one more time._'

* * *

Gray ran as fast as he could and he desperately searched for the girl.

_'Where is she? She couldn't have gotten that far._'

The raven haired man stopped to catch his breath when he spotted a a tuft of blue hair in the far distance and took off without hesitation.

Juvia was right there, he could finally reach her and make things right. His legs burned with pain, but he was too eager to get to the girl who he grew closer and closer to.

Just then, Juvia heard a sound coming from behind her and turned her head to find Gray, her Gray, running to her.

"Gray-sama?"

Said man nearly crashed into her as he tightly wrapped his arms around Juvia, his breathing was heavy and she could feel something from him: Desperation. Juvia recognized it because she too was desperate.

Desperate for an answer, and she somehow felt she would get it soon, as she melted in his arms.

Gray inhaled her scent, it was a sweet but floral smell that he loved.

"G-Gray-sama, are you smelling Juvia?" She stuttered.

"Yes." He continued and tightened his hold on her, his large hands moving down to her waist.

"Oh."

"I like it."

"..."

"I like you." Juvia's eyes widened, far more than they ever had before, "W-What was that, Gray-sama?" She asked, unsure she heard right.

"I said," Gray pulled away from Juvia while he held her in front of him, "I like you." The black haired man was blushing, and he was trying his hardest not walk away and act like he didn't care, but he had to be straightforward and SAY everything.

"Juvia, I like you."

"Gray-sama.." Juvia's voice was shaky, she was frightened.

'What does Juvia say? Does Juvia say thank you? I mean.. Juvia is so happy, but.. Juvia..' She thought.

"I know for a fact that I'm not.. _good_ with words, but I want you to know that you mean.. a lot to me Juvia. A whole lot." Gray was whispering and he felt his hands shake slightly.

"Juvia, I just need you to know that, okay? That I care a lot, and I can't stop thinking about you. So.. I.. Um.." Gray hesitated, he had never been so nervous.

"Gray-sama," the girl smiled and cupped Gray's cheek, "Juvia understands now."

The man sighed, falling back against the multitude of daisies, pulling Juvia down with him. The girl fell onto Gray's chest and the two laughed like children, pure joy overflowing from their souls.

Then Juvia felt something: confidence. But it was more than that, it was safety and trust and HAPPINESS. The blunette closed her thick-lashed eyes and kissed Gray, using her delicate hands to caress his face.

The man was truly shocked to see Juvia taking initiative and it tugged at his heart to see this shy girl open up to HIM, only him, and he rested his forehead on hers.

Simultaneously, small droplets of water began to fall one by one. The rain rapidly picked up and was now pouring a thick blanket over the field, but the two didn't move. They laughed, kissed and Gray watched as Juvia danced.

* * *

As the man sat and stared at the girl blue-haired girl before him, his thoughts began to wander to the future.

What would happen next? They were both seniors and their lives would surely change very soon.

_'Oh well. We'll cross that bridge when we get there_.'

He was with Juvia and that was the only thing that mattered now.

* * *

**This story might end pretty soon. :c Oh, well! There shall be infinite Gruvia fics!**


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